ST. CHARLES COUNTY, Mo. – A Spanish Lake, Missouri, man has been charged with making threats of violence against his employer, including going into the building with a firearm and shooting people.
According to the St. Peters Police Department’s probable cause statement, the mass shooting threat was made on February 15.
Police claim Lennie J. Hicks (age not provided) contacted a call center in New Hampshire, which is affiliated with the business in St. Charles County, and threatened to “shoot up” the place.
His employer had recently placed Hicks on unpaid leave.
Police claim Hicks had made prior threatening calls in the past five days.
An officer with the St. Peters Police Department contacted Hicks by phone to discuss the threats. Over the course of the interview, Hicks grew annoyed and said that if he did not get his money by that afternoon, he’d go into the business and kill the first white person he saw.
Police listened to an audio recording of Hicks’ conversation with the call center and believed the threats to be credible. Authorities in St. Peters contacted the St. Louis County Police Department and asked them to pick up Hicks at his Spanish Lake address, which his employer had on file. However, someone at the residence said Hicks had moved out one week prior.
The St. Charles County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office charged Hicks with one count of first-degree making a terrorist threat. His bond was set at $50,000, cash only.