Crime & Safety
FL Man Threatened Thanksgiving Shooting, ‘Havoc’ On NYC Subway: DOJ
A St. Pete man threatened to shoot "anybody" he saw on the NYC subway on Thanksgiving in a video he posted on Instagram, U.S. DOJ said.
ST. PETERSBURG, FL — A St. Petersburg man was arrested for making threats against the New York City subway system on Thanksgiving, according to a U.S. Department of Justice news release.
Robert Trout III, 19, was charged with knowingly transmitting in interstate commerce a true threat, the agency said. If convicted, he faces up to five years in federal prison.
In a threatening video posted on Instagram, Trout said he would go to New York City and “cause havoc on the subway” by shooting “anybody” that he saw, the DOJ said. He said the shooting would happen on Thanksgiving evening.
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Multiple firearms, including two semi-automatic guns with extended clips containing a total of 60 bullets, were displayed during Trout’s video.
“That’s 60 shots; 60 people dead,” he said, according to the DOJ.
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Trout was identified as the person making the threats through other recent posts to his Instagram account and witness statements.
He made his initial appearance in federal court in Tampa on Dec. 7. A judge ordered that he remain detained pending further court proceedings.
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