FGCU student arrested after social media threat

Early Wednesday morning, campus life at Florida Gulf Coast University was thrown off balance after a student threatened to shoot other students.

The student was arrested Wednesday after the university said it noticed his “concerning social media activity.”

According to an email from FGCU, 25-year-old Wesley Ricardo Huffman was arrested after his social media activity “indicated a danger to [FGCU’s] campus community.” The FGCU Police Department coordinated efforts with sheriff’s offices in Collier, Lee, and Hendry counties and the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force to ensure the campus’ safety.

Huffman said he never intended to carry the threats out. Instead, according to the police report, Huffman woke up agitated, and the goal of the threats was to get people to listen to him.

The authorities heard Huffman loud and clear while the students were nearly left speechless.

“A little bit of shock because out of every college, it could happen to, I wouldn’t think it would be FGCU,” FGCU sophomore Nelson Cabera said.

“Every year there’s more and more threats at every school, and obviously stuff has happened recently, so it’s just a bad thing to even show up in the first place,” FGCU freshman Forge Montanes said.

“I’m sure for some students it can be nerve-racking coming back to campus for classes later on today and maybe for the next couple of weeks,” FGCU senior Erika Salemme said.

Huffman was suspended pending additional student conduct, which means he is not allowed on campus or in any classes. He faces a charge of intimidation for writing a mass shooting threat.