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Apr 7, 2023 · The 13-year-old son of Rebekah Jones, who claimed she was fired for refusing to manipulate state Covid-19 data while working in Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis’ state Health Department, was arrested ...
- Overview
- Memes and messages found on Snapchat
- Jones suggests her family is being 'targeted'
The 13-year-old son of a controversial Florida data scientist was arrested Wednesday and accused of threatening to shoot up his former middle school.
The boy is the son of Rebekah Jones, a scientist and fierce critic of Gov. Ron DeSantis, who claimed she was fired from the state's health department in 2020 for refusing to censor Florida’s Covid-19 numbers.
Her son, who is not being named as he is a minor, was charged with written or electronic threat to conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism, a second-degree felony, the Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office arrest report said.
The arrest report shows that several students in the area of Navarre, Florida, reported seeing Jones' son's alleged threatening memes and messages on Snapchat and Discord — but his mother suggests that his arrest was politically motivated.
The Santa Rosa County Sheriff’s Office arrest report reveals that authorities became aware of the alleged threatening messages in late March.
A student flagged school administration on March 21 about a screenshot from social media about a possible school shooting at Holley-Navarre Middle School that was supposed to take place that week, the report said, and several students in the area were subsequently interviewed by deputies.
Teenagers who spoke with deputies showed screenshots of memes Jones’ son allegedly shared on Snapchat and said he also threatened to shoot up his former middle school the week before spring break but later changed his mind.
Deputies interviewed a student who said he remembered seeing Jones’ son had posted in February about a school shooting and saw it on his Snap story. Jones’s son also allegedly told that student “he was going to bring an axe to school but his parents took it from him,” the arrest report said.
Another student interviewed by the sheriff's office said she spoke with Jones’ son on Discord in February and he told her he wanted to end his own life and shoot up the school, targeting people that hurt him in the past.
On March 23, officers interviewed the son at his home. He said that his friends were the ones that started the rumor and he didn’t know why people make up stuff about him. The boy told the officer he had no intentions of carrying out a shooting, and no weapons were found in his room.
After her son's arrest, Rebekah Jones tweeted Wednesday: “My family is not safe. My son has been taken on the gov’s orders, and I’ve had to send my husband and daughter out of state for their safety.”
She's shared several posts on Twitter regarding her son's arrest, insinuating that it may be related to a lawsuit she filed on March 13 in Leon County, Florida, against the Florida Department of Health. The suit, filed under the state whistleblower act, seeks to have her job reinstated and monetary damages.
She said that one week after she filed the lawsuit, “a kid claiming to be the cousin of one of my son’s classmates joined their snapchat group. They recorded their conversations, and anonymously reported my son to police for sharing a popular internet meme,” which she claimed wasn’t threatening.
She said a threat assessment was launched into the complaint and the matter culminated with her son’s arrest Wednesday.
She appeared to point blame to local politics on Thursday, tweeting: “Everything my son has struggled with these last two years came from DeSantis personally targeting my family for blowing up his COVID success story lie.”
By Thursday evening, Jones tweeted: "My son is home with me now and sleeping."
- Marlene Lenthang
- Breaking News Reporter
May 22, 2024 · In 2023, Jones' then-13-year-old son, called J.J. in court records, was charged under Florida Statute 836.10, for allegedly making repeated threats to shoot up Holley Navarre Middle School and to ...
Rebekah Jones. Rebekah Jones (born July 25, 1989) is an American geographer, data scientist, [a] and activist. She is known for her COVID-19 activism in Florida, allegations against the Florida Department of Health and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, an unsubstantiated whistleblower complaint after being fired, and several legal issues.
Apr 6, 2023 · Embattled former state of Florida employee Rebekah Jones announced on Twitter Wednesday night that her 13-year-old son had been arrested in Santa Rosa County for “digital threats of terrorism ...
- Digital Coach
Jan 18, 2021 · Updated at 11:45 a.m. ET. Rebekah Jones, the data scientist who helped create Florida's COVID-19 dashboard, has turned herself in to police, in response to an arrest warrant issued by the state.
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Jan 19, 2021 · Rebekah Jones, Florida's former COVID-19 data scientist, turned herself in to police after a warrant was issued for her arrest for illegal use of the state's computer system, CBS Miami reports ...
