MIAMI (WSVN) - A teenager accused of making a threat against his school, Young Men’s Preparatory Academy, on social media faced a judge.
The 13-year-old boy stands accused of posting threatening messages on social media against the boys preparatory high school, which earned him a felony charge, Wednesday.
Miami-Dade Public Schools Superintendent Alberto Carvalho said there is a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to school threats.
Parents and students who saw the post said they were disturbed that it included a gun, a yearbook and his targets. Despite it all, the teen told detectives the post was just a joke.
“I’m very concerned,” said parent Camille Brighton, “especially when you hear the kid said it was a hoax. How can it be a hoax if he’s got dots by certain people’s names and teachers’ names?”
Brighton said her son was one of the students allegedly targeted in the threat.
“I was scared because there was a gun in the beginning of the post,” said student Estfano Brighton, “and he said targets, and I don’t want our school to end up like Parkland, [Marjory Stoneman] Douglas [High School], anything like that.”
The 13-year-old accused of posting that threat appeared before a judge Wednesday morning. He’s facing a felony and house arrest.
The judge did not think this was a laughing matter. “You cannot have any computer usage,” the judge said in court. “You do not leave the house. I understand that it’s the holiday season. You might want to leave the house to go shopping with mom or visit relatives. That’s a no-no.”
The boy’s mother also apologized for the stress her son’s actions caused on the community.
“It was a joke that he was playing, and I apologize sincerely to every family, every school member, everyone who was rattled by a kid who thought it was cool to go online and make threats,” she said. “There’s nothing cool about that.”
A parent who was keeping a close eye on their child’s social media spotted the threat on Tuesday.
“There was a parent that was monitoring their child’s social media and was able to see the post on their page, so they were able to alert local law enforcement,” said Miami-Dade Schools Police Chief Edwin Lopez.
Police then quickly arrested the teen.
The teen was kicked out of Young Men’s Preparatory Academy and is not allowed back.
Copyright 2025 Sunbeam Television Corp. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.