Florida man jailed over threat to ‘take a gun and wipe the whole gay community out in Tampa’
Ralph Perkins has been charged with making a threat to commit mass violence
A Florida man who threatened to wipe out the gay community after being rejected on a dating app has been jailed.
Ralph Perkins, 50, was arrested in Tampa, Florida after police were alerted to the threats on Tuesday.
Florida man was rejected on dating app before making threats
According to police, Perkins had sent messages the threats over a dating app after his advances were spurned.
In the message, he wrote: “I like to take a gun I like to wipe the whole gay community out in Tampa and then kill myself.”
He added: “That’s going to be my ultimate [Christmas] present to Tampa Florida is the annihilator the gay community before I kill myself.”
The Florida man has been arrested over the online threats (Florida Department of Law Enforcement)
Tampa Police in a statement: “Tampa Police were made aware of a concerning conversation a complainant had on a dating app. After being rejected for an offer he made for companionship, the suspect, later identified as Ralph Perkins, posted threatening statements to the social media platform.
“Officers were able to quickly confirm Perkins identity and detectives immediately began an investigation.
“Once an arrest warrant was obtained, Tampa Police detectives, accompanied by Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office deputies, responded to Perkins’s house in the county.”
Ralph Perkins charged with making threats to commit mass violence
“He was taken into custody and charged with Written Threats to Commit Mass Violence or an Act of Terrorism. Perkins provided a post-Miranda confession to the offense and is currently in Hillsborough County Jail – Orient Road.”
The police department did not identify which app was used to make the threats.
According to the Tampa Bay Times, Perkins is a registered sex offender over a 2004 offence recorded in Alabama.
The man has been repeatedly been arrested in the past.
