Sgt. Gene Tolbert with the St. Johns County Sheriff's Office demonstrates a makeshift gun confiscated during an investigation into two local teenagers. The gun, made of piping and wood, was part of a cache that included other makeshift firearms and explosive material. | Noah Hertz, Jacksonville Today
Published on August 7, 2026 at 4:53 pm
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Criminal charges have been filed against two teenagers who amassed a cache of homemade guns and explosive material.
Deputies arrested a 14-year-old and 13-year-old in April after receiving an anonymous tip that the two Switzerland Point Middle School students were planning an armed robbery, St. Johns County Sheriff Rob Hardwick said Friday.
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The 14-year-old faces eight felony charges including conspiracy to commit robbery with a firearm and will be tried as an adult. He remains in custody at the St. Johns County Jail.
The 13-year-old faces one charge of conspiracy to commit a robbery with a firearm but was released from custody.
Guns and white supremacy
Hardwick announced the charges against the two teens at a joint news conference with representatives from the St. Johns County School District, the State Attorney’s Office and the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
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After receiving an anonymous tip through the FortifyFL reporting tool, deputies searched the homes of the two teenagers.
The Sheriff’s Office says evidence found at the 14-year-old’s northwest St. Johns County home included makeshift firearms made from items that could be purchased at a hardware store, copies of materials espousing the racist Great Replacement Theory and information about how to build explosives and homemade ammunition.
The teenager also possessed a tactical vest with White Supremacist and Neo-Nazi slogans and imagery, including references to Adolf Hitler and previous mass shootings.
Hardwick said a further search of the teen’s personal devices indicated a fascination with mass shooters and a written manifesto.
Police began coordinating with the ATF to test material confiscated during searches. According to the Sheriff’s Office, the ATF’s labs confirmed the recovery of homemade black powder and other chemicals that can be used to create explosive devices.
Representatives from the school district said there was no indication in the teens’ correspondences going back to early 2025 that they presented any threat to their school. Still, Superintendent Brennan Asplen says the fact that nobody was injured is a testament to the FortifyFL tip line.
“I just hope that all of our community continues to use that so that we can do our jobs and stay in front of it and be proactive, just like this situation,” Asplen said.
After receiving the anonymous tip, Asplen said, Switzerland Point parents were informed that the district had received an anonymous tip and that the authorities were conducting an investigation.
A continuing investigation
The investigation by the Sheriff’s Office and ATF is continuing.
As of now, Sgt. Gene Tolbert said, “nothing is off the table” in regards to future charges in the case, including against the teenagers’ parents.
“It starts in the home with parents paying attention,” Hardwick said.
The sheriff stressed the importance of involvement in children’s lives to curb behavior that could lead to violence. He said the 14-year-old’s mother was aware of her teenager’s fascination with fires and explosives as well as a homemade “pop gun” — in reality a makeshift gun that emulates the power of a shotgun.
Representatives from the St. Johns County School District confirmed that neither student is enrolled in a local school any longer and that the district had “no intention” of allowing either to return.
