Charlotte County deputies have arrested two individuals in separate incidents for making threats to carry out school shootings.
On February 26, 2025, a Charlotte High School student reported a Snapchat group chat where a non-student, later identified as 17-year-old Paul Gaston Cruz, allegedly stated he was planning a school shooting. The student informed her mother, who contacted the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office. Detectives interviewed the student to confirm the allegations.
Cruz was later located at the Take-5 Oil Change on Veterans Boulevard and transported to the District 3 office for questioning. He was arrested for sending written threats to conduct a mass shooting and has been trespassed from all Charlotte County Schools.
Charlotte County Sheriff Bill Prummell addressed the arrests, stating, “I am very glad that both of these individuals were caught before they even had the chance to carry out their threats. We live in a world where technology is a blessing and a curse. Parents, I encourage you to talk to your children about the seriousness of what they say, what they do, and what they post. Once they hit send, especially on something as serious as a school threat, it is far too late.”
In a separate incident on February 25, 2025, the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office received a request from the Southwest Florida FBI Task Force regarding threats made via text message about a school shooting. Detectives determined that Port Charlotte High School student 18-year-old Jayden Jerome Fain had been in communication with a student from a school in Pennsylvania.
Investigators discovered that Fain sent multiple text messages stating he was going to “shoot up the school” and advised the Pennsylvania student not to attend for her own safety. After repeated attempts to get Fain to stop, the student reported the threats to her mother, who contacted local authorities.
Fain was located at his residence and transported to the District Office for questioning. He was then arrested and charged with sending written threats to conduct a mass shooting.
Fain has since bonded out, while Cruz was transported to the Juvenile Assessment Center.
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