Authorities arrested a 19-year-old for allegedly making threats against a Turning Point USA Student Action Summit (SAS) in Florida.
The suspect, Alejandro Richard Velasquez Gomez, allegedly threatened a “day of retribution against humanity” in a July 18 Instagram post under the account name, @LatinoZoomerPolitics, the FBI said in a criminal complaint, according to the Tampa Bay Times. Velasquez Gomez said his “revenge” would take place July 22, the start of the two-day summit.
“I will have revenge against all of humanity, which all of you will pay for my suffering. SAS will be the turning point of the LatinoZoomer lore,” Gomez wrote, according to the NY Daily News.
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The teen allegedly bought a plane ticket to travel from Austin to Tampa on July 22, but canceled his flight the night prior to the Turning Point USA conference, according to the Tampa Bay Times. The flight led authorities to classify his remarks as a credible threat.
Tampa police issued an arrest warrant July 21, charging him with sending written or electronic threats to kill, injure or conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism, a second-degree felony, Fox News reported. (RELATED: Conservative Conference Threatened By Heavily-Armed Muslim Man)
Authorities arrested the teen July 22 and charged him with making threatening interstate communications and possession of child pornography on his phone, according to Tampa Bay Times. He has remained jailed since Sunday.
Velasquez Gomez allegedly planned his attack to mirror 22-year-old Elliot Rodger, who killed six people and injured a dozen more near the University of California, Santa Barbara, before committing suicide in 2014, the Tampa Bay Times reported. His post resembled a video Rodger uploaded to YouTube in 2011 where he threatened “a day of retribution against humanity” and lamented women for refusing his sexual advances, Fox News reported.
The Turning Point USA Student Action Summit engages conservative students and young activists across the country. The most recent summit featured prominent speakers including Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, Republican Missouri Sen. Josh Hawley, and Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.