Son of Rebekah Jones, Florida whistle-blower, arrested in probe of threatening internet posts

The 13-year-old son of a controversial Florida whistle-blower was arrested this week on charges that he made “terrorist” threats on the internet to shoot up his former school.

The son of Rebekah Jones — who lost her job after using her access to health department data to challenge Gov. Ron DeSantis’ COVID numbers early in the pandemic — was arrested Wednesday on charges he made “written [or] electronic threats” of a “mass shooting [or] terrorist act.”

The threats reportedly were made during a series of conversations on Snapchat and Discord, an instant messaging social platform, beginning around Feb. 1. They were brought to the attention of law enforcement authorities by other teens in March.

The teens showed deputies screenshots of memes shared by Jones’ son on Snapchat, where they said the boy had also threatened to shoot up his former middle school the week before spring break, but then said he later changed his mind, according to the arrest warrant.

The boy was interviewed by sheriff’s deputies on March 23 and shown the memes, which he acknowledged sharing, the report said. The youth is not being named to protect his privacy.

One meme — part of a viral series — pictures a brain with intrusive thoughts about grabbing an officer’s gun, knowing that the result could be fatal. “Every time I see school security,” the boy wrote when he sent the meme, according to the warrant.

Authorities say he also posted another meme described in the warrant as “an individual with a shaved head holding a Hi-C drink. The message on the meme was “I’m feeling so silly I might shoot up a building full of people.”

He told the deputies at the time he had no plans to do anything, they noted in the report. A deputy told his parents it seemed like a “teenager” thing before leaving without making an arrest, a video of the exchange showed. Deputies did not question him about the more disturbing social media posts attributed to him in this week’s arrest report.

It’s unclear whether the deputies were aware of the messages, which were uncovered by a warrant to search his Snapchat account. The messages listed in the warrant involved threats of violence, including attacks on schoolchildren.

Feb. 9: “I want to shoot up the school.”

Feb. 12: “If I get a gun I’m gonna shoot up hnms lol” — an apparent reference to Holley Navarre Middle School, which the youth had previously attended.

Feb. 12: “I always keep a knife on me so maybe I’ll just stab ppl.”

Feb. 12: “...I have no hope in getting better, so why not kill the losers at school.”

An unredacted version of the warrant, obtained by the Herald, shows the threatening messages were sent by a username that was different than the one Jones’ son used to send the memes.

The document does not say how authorities determined both usernames are linked to the same account. The redacted version circulated by authorities does not reveal that there were two different usernames involved.

Jones provided a screenshot of her son’s account, which showed he changed to his current username in January, before the threats were made. She said he has never used the handle associated with the threatening messages.

Until his release after a court appearance Thursday, the boy was being held at the Escambia Regional Juvenile Detention Center, a 50-bed state-run lockup in Pensacola. Jones and her son live in Santa Rosa County, just east of Pensacola in the Florida Panhandle.

On Twitter Thursday morning, Jones suggested her son was arrested only for sharing well-aired memes — especially common among young people — that were critical of police and school resource officers.

Tonya Shepherd, public information officer for the Santa Rosa County School District, declined to comment on the specifics of the case.

“The district’s number one priority is the safety of students,” Shepherd said in a statement to the Herald. “Any notifications regarding safety concerns are thoroughly investigated by the district, and, where appropriate, referred to law enforcement.”

Wednesday’s detention marked the boy’s first arrest. He appears to have been evaluated Wednesday at the region’s Juvenile Assessment Center, a centralized screening facility for minors who are charged with a crime.

When asked by Circuit Judge David Oberliesen, Jones said she could not afford an attorney for her son, for whom a public defender was appointed. The youth was released to home detention with an electronic monitor. Oberliesen ordered that he have no access to the internet outside of school work. At his mother’s request, he will be allowed to play on a local soccer team.

The youth’s arraignment was scheduled for May 3 at the Santa Rosa County Courthouse.