School shooting tweets lead to Sarasota High arrest

The Sarasota Police Department has a 16-year-old in custody after discovering several tweets in which he appeared to be planning a local school shooting.

Since the middle of November, Sarasota High School junior Joshua Wilson has allegedly posted five tweets referencing plans for the shooting, including a picture of a hand holding a handgun inside a backpack with the caption, “it’s time.” The latest tweet, which was posted Friday morning, reads, “can’t wait to shoot up my school.”

Officers made the arrest at the end of the school day, said SPD spokeswoman Genevieve Judge.

“Our Officers and detectives responded in a professional manner and worked with our community partners included the Sarasota County School District and Sarasota High School to make sure this threat was investigated and handled properly,” said Police Chief Bernadette DiPino in a news release. “We take these types of threats seriously.”

Police charged Wilson with threatening to throw, project, place or discharge any destructive device, which is a felony. He is being held without bail at the Sarasota County Jail.

Sarasota County School District spokesman Scott Ferguson said the district could not disclose individual student disciplinary action, but administrators would be reviewing the situation, and Wilson would be put through a disciplinary process. The district will not be increasing security measures in response to the threats because they were specific to the student and Sarasota High.

“We dealt with it immediately,” Ferguson said.

Wilson's most recent tweet is an apology for the threats. See below for a selection of the tweets in question.

can't WAIT to shoot up my school

— jish (@Duhssault) December 5, 2014

it's time pic.twitter.com/gNNrkSG2FS

— jish (@Duhssault) December 3, 2014

I sincerely apologize to anyone who took me seriously, I love my high school and honestly own no weapons to want to harm anyone in any way.

— jish (@Duhssault) December 5, 2014