A Florida mom allegedly threatened to shoot up an elementary school because she was upset over her kids’ move to a different building — and made reference to Parkland shooter Nikolas Cruz in a conversation about the threat, according to documents.
Miranda Perez, 28, of Lake Worth, Florida, has been charged with sending a written threat to conduct a mass shooting, according to the probable cause affidavit.
Perez allegedly told a man on Facebook messenger on Sunday that she was upset her kids were being moved to Barton Elementary School in Lake Worth, according to the affidavit.
The man said Perez “made comments in reference” to Cruz, who is accused of killing 17 people in a shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, last year.
Perez allegedly told the man via Facebook video chat that she was going to Facebook friend Cruz’s brother, Zachary Cruz, because she likes “violent things,” the affidavit said.
After the video chat, Perez allegedly wrote on Facebook messenger to the man, “I’m thinking of doing a school shooting at Barton… It’s there [sic] fault,” the affidavit said.
Perez’s home was among those impacted by a school board resolution that forced about 390 students to change schools to help address overcrowding, according to the Miami Herald.
Perez allegedly confirmed that she did send the messages and said “she did think about shooting the school, but claimed she would never actually do it,” the affidavit said.
Perez was arrested Sunday and has been taken to a behavioral treatment center, according to court records. She has not yet appeared in court or been assigned an attorney, according to the public defender’s office.
School district spokeswoman Julie Houston Trieste told ABC News the arrest was brought to the district’s attention by the sheriff’s office. She declined to comment further citing the ongoing case.
Credit: ABC news
