Officials with the Volusia County Sheriff's Office say a 13-year-old student at Galaxy Middle School became the sixth student since Feb. 16 to face criminal charges from the Sheriff's Office after making a threat of violence at school.
According to a Sheriff's Office release, a school resource deputy responded at Galaxy Monday morning after the student, who was angry at his teacher, stood up and stated: "I am going to bring out my Glock and shoot everyone."
Officials say the student made gestures with his hands as if he was holding a firearm and made shooting sound effects as he pointed the imaginary weapon at his classmates.
Investigators say the student told the deputy he was joking and has no access to any weapons.
He was charged with making a false report concerning the use of a firearm, a felony, and disruption of a school function, a misdemeanor, deputies said.
Unrelated to that episode, the Sheriff’s Office said it provided an increased presence at Galaxy Monday due to a social media post reported over the weekend.
Authorities said the post referenced rumors of a shooting threat and claimed law enforcement had warned students to stay home from school on Monday.
They made it clear this was false.
Investigators with the Sheriff's Office say the student whose post was reported is facing a misdemeanor charge of disruption of a school function.
The post read: "On Monday February 26th, Their Is a Possible Shooting At Galaxy Middle School in Deltona Flordia, Cops Telling Everyione Stay Home On This Day!!!! Please We don't Want to See a Shooting Like parkland county in Flordia. We Also Heard Galaxy middle Has Kids "Joking" About shooting Up the School, Those could Be our possible victims. PLEASE NOBODY IN DELTONA FL IN GALAXY MIDDLE DO NOT GO TO SCHOOL MONDAY!!!"
Law enforcement officers say while it has not been officially determined if the defendant, a 13-year-old female student at Galaxy Middle School, was the post's original author, her act of sharing the message resulted in significant student absences, altered normal school functions and consumed investigative resources of the Sheriff’s Office.
In addition to the criminal charge, the Sheriff’s Office says it is preparing an affidavit for the cost of the investigation.
Authorities warn that individuals who share social media posts about potential threats instead of reporting them directly to law enforcement cause potential disruptions at schools, and, as evidenced by this case, may face criminal charges.
If found guilty, authorities say those individuals may also be held responsible for the entire cost of the law enforcement investigation.