VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. — A 12-year-old girl at Silver Sands Middle School faces charges after police found she sent herself fake Snapchat threats of a school shooting. Authorities from Port Orange Police and Volusia County Sheriff’s Office investigated and concluded she fabricated the threats.
Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood emphasized that law enforcement must treat every report with urgency. “We have to investigate every potential threat to a school with everything we’ve got,” Chitwood said.
The girl initially told authorities she received messages from an unknown user, which contained pictures of firearms, details of her class schedule and friends, demands for explicit images, and threats of a school shooting.
“The messages included pictures of guns and details about her class schedule and her friends,” Chitwood said. “There were deleted messages she said were explicit images from the suspect.”
The digital evidence ultimately pointed investigators back to the student. “What we found out was that our 12-year-old victim created the Snapchat account and sent the threatening messages to herself,” Chitwood said.
Investigators confirmed the firearms images were found online. The girl told detectives she sent the messages because she was dared.
She has been charged with making a false report and unlawfully using a communications device. Chitwood emphasized that such hoaxes significantly impact the community.
Again, these are the cases that disrupt schools, spread fear, and consume the time and resources we need to focus on real issues and threats,” Chitwood said.
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