Florida Uni Student Faces Jail For Wanting Netanyahu To Drop Bomb On Event

Gabriela Saldana was arrested in the early hours of April 17 following an investigation by campus police into posts made in a WhatsApp group of more than 200 students.

According to reports, by The International Business Times t, he messages referenced Benjamin Netanyahu and appeared to call for an attack on the university’s Ocean Bank Convocation Center, where a student event was scheduled.

In one message, Saldana allegedly wrote: “[Israel’s Benjamin] Netanyahu, if you can hear me, drop some bonbons for us Capstone students in Ocean Bank Convocation Center.” Authorities later concluded that “bonbons” was intended to mean “bombs,” prompting alarm among recipients. A second message reportedly escalated the situation further, stating there would be a bomb at the venue and attributing responsibility to another student.

The messages quickly triggered concern among members of the chat, leading to a police response. Saldana was taken into custody and later appeared before Mindy S. Glazer after being held at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center.

Her bail was set at $5,000, and she now faces a second-degree felony charge under Florida Statute 836.10 for making written threats to kill or cause bodily harm—a conviction that could carry a sentence of more than a decade in prison.

During the hearing, Saldana’s defense suggested the messages were intended as a joke, an explanation she herself echoed in follow-up texts to the group, reportedly admitting she had “written a dumb joke that should not have been made.” However, Judge Glazer emphasized that the legal standard focuses on how a reasonable person would interpret the statements, not the sender’s intent.

“I can understand your position when you are saying this is a joke,” the judge said, “but to an objective person, it’s not a joke, and it would be enough for probable cause.”

University officials later confirmed the arrest and described the situation as involving a “credible and imminent threat of violence” tied to a specific time and location. In a public statement, the university reassured students and staff that there was no ongoing threat to the campus community.

The case now moves forward through the courts, where prosecutors will need to determine whether the messages meet the threshold for a criminal conviction, highlighting the serious consequences that can arise from statements made in digital spaces—even those claimed to be in jest.