ALACHUA COUNTY, Fla. – A 12-year-old boy from Alachua County is facing serious charges after investigators say he made a hoax threat that prompted a major law enforcement response at a high school in Ohio.
According to the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, detectives with the Intelligence Led Policing Unit were contacted early Thursday afternoon, January 8, by investigators from the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office in Ohio. The request followed a disturbing call made earlier that morning threatening a mass shooting and possible bomb at Columbia High School in Columbia Station, Ohio.
The caller, identified as a young male, allegedly told dispatchers he was outside the school with an AR-15 and planned to “run in your school and kill everyone,” while also stating he was about to call in a bomb threat. The call triggered an immediate and large-scale response from the Lorain County Sheriff’s Office, Columbia Township Fire Department, Lorain County Metro Parks, and the Ohio State Highway Patrol.
After securing the school and conducting a thorough investigation, authorities determined the threat was not credible and classified the incident as a “swatting” call, a dangerous hoax meant to provoke a heavy emergency response.
Investigators traced the Google Voice number used to make the call to an IP address registered to a residence in Hawthorne, Florida. From there, Alachua County Sheriff’s Office detectives quickly narrowed the investigation to a home in the Cross Creek area, where two juvenile males lived with a caregiver.
While speaking with the caregiver, detectives learned that the voice captured on the recorded call belonged to a 12-year-old boy living in the home. The juvenile was detained and brought to the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office, where he was interviewed in the presence of his guardian.
Following the interview, detectives established probable cause to charge the juvenile with making a false report involving a bomb or violent firearm threat and unlawful use of a two-way communications device, both violations of Florida law. The Lorain County Sheriff’s Office was notified before the juvenile was transported to a Department of Juvenile Justice detention facility.
Sheriff Scott praised the cooperation between agencies, emphasizing that the swift collaboration helped bring accountability in a case that caused widespread fear and disruption hundreds of miles away.
Authorities noted that while the threat was ultimately a hoax, the impact was very real, forcing evacuations, locking down a school, and drawing significant emergency resources. Investigators continue to stress that swatting incidents are dangerous crimes that can have life-altering consequences.
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