12-year-old posts death threats on Snapchat in competition for boy, Florida cops say

A 12-year-old girl took puppy love to extremes when she repeatedly threatened to kill her rival over a boy’s attention, according to investigators in North Florida.

The threats were made on the social media app Snapchat and resulted in the girl being arrested Thursday, Nov. 21, the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release.

The victim’s older sister alerted deputies to the graphic messages, investigators said.

“Threats came after the suspect, victim, and a third juvenile female were engaged in an argument in a Snapchat group chat over a boy. After proposing a fight, the suspect sent a series of audio recordings stating to the victim, ‘I will literally blow your brains out’ and “I will literally ... kill you if you call the cops,’” the sheriff’s office reported.

“The recordings were followed by a video which showed the suspect walking towards the victim’s house. All messages were captured by screenshot and video recording, which were later provided to deputies.”

Investigators interviewed the 12-year-old suspect, who initially denied having a Snapchat account and sending any such messages. However, deputies found the app installed on her phone, along with her Snapchat profile and the threatening messages, the sheriff’s office said.

The 12-year-old was arrested and charged with making written or electronic threats to kill someone and later turned over to the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice department, officials said. She was released into the custody of her parents.

“If you threaten to kill someone, even if it’s over something as trivial as arguing over a boy, we will arrest you,” Flagler County Sheriff Rick Staly said in the release.

“I ask parents to be the sheriff in your home and teach your children that threatening to kill someone is never OK. Teach them how to handle disagreements, especially in relationships. Your guidance and teachings will last them a lifetime. If you don’t, we will.”

Flagler County is about a 60-mile drive south from Jacksonville.

This story was originally published November 26, 2024 at 5:42 AM with the headline "12-year-old posts death threats on Snapchat in competition for boy, Florida cops say."