Key West Police say they won't charge a group of Key West High School (KWHS) boys who may have been responsible for creating a web site that depicted the murder of another student.
Last Jan. 21, Detective Al Citelli was alerted to the existence of a web site, developed on the KWHS computer system, that warned that a 17-year-old female student at the school "will die." The animated program reportedly showed a yearbook picture of the girl. Then, a gun appeared and fired five bullets at the photo, hitting the image of the girl in the forehead. The back of the head exploded and what appeared to be blood splattered on the background.
An e-mail message associated with the site defamed the girl's boyfriend, also a student at the school.
Citelli and Police Lt. Greg Buck interviewed several KWHS students who said they knew about the web site but denied being involved in its creation. An agent from the Florida Dept. of Law Enforcement was also involved in one of the interviews. KWHS Vice Principal John Welsh as also involved in the investigation.
In his report, Citelli said he consulted with Assistant State Attorney Bob Shillinger. Shillinger reportedly told him that, because the threat was not sent directly to the girl, no state statutes applied.
Citelli said he also contacted U.S. Attorney Frank Williams in Gainesville. "He told me that I did not have any criminal charges on the federal level," Citelli said.
The case has reportedly been closed.
But KWTN has learned that one of the boys suspected of involvement in the incident was suspended from school for four days.