Did Julian Edelman Stop A School Shooting? Patriots WR Reports Ominous Instagram Comment

After February’s gun massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Florida, there has been increased anxiety over threats made towards schools on social media. That was demonstrated at the end of March when New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman possibly stopped a potential shooting in its tracks, the New York Times reported.

Like any celebrity with millions of followers, the athlete’s Instagram comments are a cacophonous jungle of users saying things that may or may not be related to the picture in question. That was true of one comment Edelman received on a recent post, which another user alerted him to via direct message.

“I’m going to shoot my school up watch the news,” the comment left by user its_ya_boiii_aidan said.

When Edelman was tipped off by the good online Samaritan, he had his assistant Shannen Moen get on the case. She called the cops and gave them pertinent information about the comment, which they used to trace back to an IP address in Port Huron, Michigan. At that point, police in Port Huron took over, making their way to the house the comment was sent from.

At the home, a 14-year-old boy confirmed he had posted the comment, which was allegedly in reference to the middle school he attended. There were two rifles in the home, both owned by the boy’s mother. He is currently in juvenile detention and faces up to four years in jail on a felony charge of making a false report of a terrorist threat.

Edelman acknowledged that recent events and the fact that he has a young daughter influenced his decision to take the threat seriously. The user who directly messaged Edelman about the ominous comment will reportedly get a care package for his efforts from the Patriot.

“He’s the real hero,” Edelman said, per the Times.

Schools around the United States have reported and investigated hundreds of copycat threats after the Parkland shooting. Edelman’s situation was surprisingly not the first alleged threat involving an NFL player; former offensive lineman Jonathan Martin was taken into custody in late February after an Instagram post was interpreted as a threat against his old high school.