An 11-year-old girl from Florida was recently taken into custody after allegedly threatening a fellow student with a box cutter at her elementary school. The young girl faces charges of aggravated battery and possession of a weapon on school property, as confirmed by local authorities.
The incident occurred at Manatee Elementary School, located in Naples, approximately 100 miles west of Miami. The Collier County Sheriff’s Office responded to a distress call from the school on January 11, following a report of a student being threatened by a classmate.
The Sheriff’s Office has refrained from releasing the name of the accused due to her age. Upon reaching the school, detectives interviewed both the alleged victim and the accused regarding the incident. The victim claimed that the girl approached him from behind in the school cafeteria, poked him in the neck with the knife multiple times, and whispered a threat.
Security camera footage from the school cafeteria was obtained by detectives, which reportedly corroborated the victim’s account of the incident. A Youth Relations deputy also confirmed the victim’s version of events.
The Youth Relations deputy conducted a search of the accused girl and found a box cutter concealed in her waistband. Additional details about the incident were provided by an arrest report obtained by the Sarasota, Florida ABC affiliate WWSB.
The report stated that the 11-year-old suspect not only poked the victim in the neck with the box cutter but also repeatedly whispered, “I will kill you.” After the initial confrontation, the victim tried to leave the cafeteria but was pursued by the suspect. The girl allegedly cornered the victim against a window, still holding the weapon.
This incident underscores the importance of maintaining a safe and secure environment in schools and the need for effective measures to prevent such incidents in the future.