Florida teen, 15, arrested after threatening to shoot up high school - read chilling text sent to classmate

A teenage girl has been arrested for threatening to 'shoot up' her Florida high school.

Mya Elizabeth Young, 15, is charged with written or electronic threat to conduct a mass shooting or act of terrorism, after cops obtained text messages the suspect had sent to a classmate.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office released some of the chilling correspondence Tuesday, shortly after carrying out Young's arrest.

The suspect, who cops referred to with he/him pronouns, was cuffed at Alonso High School. The school is set in Tampa, where threats of violence have kept law enforcement busy as of late.

In Hillsborough County, there have been 260 threats made by students since September alone, just a few weeks into the school-year. The texts sent by Young are particularly graphic, and contain threats of violence against several fellow students.

'Keep playing with me, I'm gonna kill them too,' one of the released texts reads.

'Watch I'm gonna bring a gun to school and I'm a shoot all of you guys.

'Starting with [REDACTED] and ending with [REDACTED] and [REDACTED] and everybody that is around.

'I'm a start with [REDACTED] and then I'm gonna end with you [REDACTED],' it continues.

'And then I'm gonna kill people. I'm gonna kill everybody[.] Watch.'

Along with the texts, cops released a mug shot of Young, as well as a brief statement.

It detailed how cops had arrested the suspect 'for threatening to 'shoot up' [her high school] in a text message correspondence', while laying out the charges filed against the would-be shooter.

It was posted on the police department's at 4pm, about an hour after the school day concluded.

HCSO's School Threat Assessment and Response Team responded to school to arrest Young, cops in the county added, barely a week after they began investigating another threat that forced Newsome High School into a lockout for multiple hours.

In addition to being charged with the threat of committing a shooting, Young was hit with unlawful use of a two-way communications device - a felony unique to Florida punishable by up to five years.

It appears when cops believe they can prove a suspect willingly and knowingly used a device such as a computer or telephone to aid in the commission of a felony.

Written or electronic threats to kill, do bodily injury, or conduct a mass shooting is considered a felony of the second-degree, and is punishable by up to 15 years in prison.

Young can also be hit with a $10,000 fine, if prosecutors decide to treat him as an adult.

Young's gender also is unclear, as cops used the word 'he' to address him.

DailyMail.com has reached out to The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office for more information, as it and other nearby departments continue to face cases involving similar threats.

It remained unclear whether Young will be tried as an adult as of Tuesday evening, with prosecutors yet to issue a statement. 

On Friday, September 13, threats to shoot a teacher and bring a bomb to the campus of Newsome High School was posted on Fortify Florida, a suspicious activity reporting tool that allows users to relay information to law enforcement agencies.

Deputies responded, and the school was placed on lockout while several HCSO units, including the School Threat Assessment Response Squad and  SWAT Team systematically swept the school to ensure students' safety.

Approximately 200 officers participated in the search, spending  hours meticulously searching through buildings, conducting security screenings, and working with school administrators to evacuate students. 

When all was said and done, no weapons or credible threats were uncovered, however, though the investigation remains ongoing   

'The turmoil and trauma experienced today by these students, staff, and parents is unimaginable, and no community should ever have to endure such fear and uncertainty,' Sheriff Chad Chronister said in a presser at the time.

'Every member of the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, myself included, is committed to deploying every available resource to ensure the safety and security of our schools is not compromised.' 

A total of eight threats regarding Newsome High School were sent that day alone.

In the preceding week, HCSO investigated 111 school-based threats submitted to Fortify Florida alone, and 260 overall this month.

Nearby counties like Sarasota, Pinellas, Polk, and Pasco are receiving reports of threats as well, with sheriff's offices in those counties reporting 109, 65, 140, and 100 tips, respectively. 

Of those, there have only been a handful of arrests, with the bulk of them being made in Polk County, where 24 have been recorded since the start of the school year. 

Compare that to Pinellas and Sarasota, which have made three arrests involving threats apiece, and Pasco's none. 

Up until Tuesday, Hillsborough had made no arrests as well, with the case against young changing that.

That investigation, as of writing, continues, with the suspect being held in the meantime.