19-Year-Old Man Who Used Anti-Gay Slur in Mass Shooting Threat to University Says It Was a ‘Joke’: FBI

A 19-year-old man who posted a mass shooting threat online with a picture of an AR-15 style rifle and a promise that “100 F*****s Will Die” says that he was being “ironic.”

Sean Michael Albert told investigators that his Dec. 13, 2022 Discord post — which included the address of Florida State University — was a “a joke,” and that the picture of the gun came from Reddit. He allegedly used words like “ironic” and “satirical” to describe it, according to the probable cause affidavit in support of his arrest.

Albert has been charged with interstate communication of a threat to injure the person of another.

Some who knew Albert, including his roommate, described to the feds a pattern of disturbing and confrontational behavior.

From the complaint:

Interviews of the apartment manager, as well as the security manager for Full Sail University and ALBERT’s roommate, revealed a history of violence and a pattern of concerning behavior by ALBERT. In particular, it is assessed that ALBERT has rapidly progressed from making controversial statements online, to confrontation with classmates and peers in online spaces, as well as direct confrontation with people outside of his university.

Investigators cited “ALBERT’s history and pattern of behavior, which includes making other apparent threats and derogatory statements.”

Those other alleged statements included:

• “Kill all joggers,” a disguised, derogatory term for Black people
• “Tear gas a synagogue,” he allegedly wrote, in response to his plans for a weekend.
• “A genocide on f—-ts NEEDS to happen not even a question.”

Authorities said that Albert previously made similar statements under his Discord username. Investigators noted that the recovery address for his Discord email was an account featuring his name.

“The user who posted the threat used the moniker ‘BloodStainedSand#0088,’ and posted a picture of an AR-15 style or similar model rifle with the following caption: ‘600 W College Ave, Tallahassee, FL 32306. At 13:00 December 17, 2022 100 F—-ts Will Die, Cya there!'”

That was the address for Florida State University. According to court documents, Albert was a student at Full Sail University, nearly three hundred miles southwest.

Discord handed over the IP address and subscriber information for the post, which included a verified email address. Investigators said they tracked the IP address down to Albert’s home in Winter Park, Florida.

The FBI says that Albert agreed to talk to them even though they told him he could refuse to speak. They asked him why he believed he was being interviewed, documents said.

“After providing three possibilities of why the FBI would want to speak with him (none of which involved illegal activity), ALBERT responded that it was probably because ‘[he] made a post online that may be perceived as a mass shooting threat,'” authorities wrote.

He allegedly admitted posting the FSU threat but maintained that he did not think it was illegal. He maintained it was “ironic,” “satirical,” and “a joke,” authorities said.

“However, when ALBERT was asked whether he knew the location of the address which he referenced in the posted threat, ALBERT acknowledged knowing that the address belonged to a Florida university,” the FBI wrote. “When asked why he picked that address to include in the threat, ALBERT stated the reason was because it would get the most reaction from those on the Discord server.”

The case docket shows that Albert has been ordered to remain in custody.

“No condition or combination of conditions of release will reasonably assure the safety of any other person and the community,” said the detention order, which was issued Wednesday.

No future hearings were indicated on the docket.

Read the criminal complaint here.