Police say that Helena resident Arthur Roy, 18, became angry with the boy after he gave up the partial plot to Star Wars: The Force Awakens during an online conversation last week, The Guardian reports.
According to court documents, the victim, identified as M.C., claims Roy was angered by the post and sent an image of himself with a weapon and a message saying he was “coming to find him” with a Colt 1911 that had a “hair trigger,” Metro reports. The boy took screenshots of the Facebook conversation which have since been deleted.
Police say that Roy threatened to visit M.C.’s school and shoot him at lunchtime, Buzzfeed reports.
It’s alleged that M.C.’s spoilers upset Roy so much that he sent threats via Facebook to other students at the alternative school, which was put on lockdown Friday morning after hearing about the threats. He was arrested Friday afternoon and remains in jail on bail set at $10,000.
“The victim was afraid it was a legitimate threat,” said Melissa Broch, a deputy attorney for Lewis and Clark County, per Reuters. “The victim believed that the defendant might come to his school and harm him.”
The New York Daily News reports that Roy’s mother asked police why they were arresting her son since there was only a BB gun in the photo, court documents report.
Chris Abbott is Roy’s public defender in a separate case. He was not available for comment Tuesday, and it is unclear if he has been assigned to this case.
A preliminary hearing has been set for Jan. 15, but it’s likely the case will move to the district court before that. Roy faces up to 20 years in prison if he is found guilty.
“Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” the seventh installment in the “Star Wars” franchise has cleaned up at the U.S. and Canadian box office, raking in a record-breaking $248 million, and earning $529 million globally over its opening weekend, Reuters reports.
