Tampa man gets jail time after pleading guilty to making online threats against BLM activists
TAMPA, Fla. - A Tampa man is pleading guilty to making online threats toward Blacks Lives Matter demonstrators. He faced up to 15 years in prison, but will only serve 60 days in county jail, under the plea deal.
Alex Bancroft was accused of making threats in a Facebook post, writing, "I am going to start target practice with these mother [expletive] with there [sic] signs."
Later, he posted a picture of cards from the game "Cards Against Humanity" with the caption, "thats right.. I killed..how you ask?…African children…an ar-15 assault rifle."
Alex Bancroft
A year later, he pleaded guilty to one count of written threat to conduct a mass shooting act of terrorism.
Hillsborough County Circuit Judge Michael Williams questioned Bancroft during a virtual hearing.
During the hearing, Judge Williams wanted to make sure the public was safe once Bancroft was out of jail.
He called psychologist Dr. Christopher Iler, who evaluated Bancroft.
"Do you view Mr. Bancroft as a credible threat in respect to the allegations against him?" the judge asked.
Dr. Iler replied, "I found him not a credible threat to the community, given his history and the test results that he provided."
And with that, Bancroft got the green light on his plea deal, with one condition: his roommate's gun has to go.
"Nothing is going to violate your probation quicker, I promise you," the judge said.
As part of his plea agreement, Bancroft will also serve 24 months probation and undergo another psychological evaluation.