Overview
- Gabriela Saldana, a 23-year-old Florida International University student, was arrested and charged with making written threats tied to posts in a large class WhatsApp group.
- Judge Mindy S. Glazer set bail at $5,000 after finding probable cause, saying an objective reader could view the messages as a credible threat even if the sender called them a joke.
- Investigators say the posts in a roughly 215-person chat referenced Benjamin Netanyahu and asked to “drop some bonbons” at FIU’s Ocean Bank Convocation Center, which police read as code for bombs.
- FIU police said multiple students reported the messages, and the probe involved the FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force and the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office, with officials stating there is no ongoing campus threat.
- Saldana faces a felony under Florida’s written-threat statute that carries up to 15 years in prison, and the case now moves forward as her family launches an online fundraiser for legal costs.