Nicholas Robert Godfrey, 18, faces a first-degree attempt to solicit murder charge after Pasco County detectives obtained messages they said the Fivay High School student wrote on the social networking site seeking a professional killer, WTVT reported.
“I need a guy who could kill someone,” Godfrey allegedly wrote in one of the messages, offering $100,000 "for the guy's head."
"No joke, I need him eliminated as soon as possible," another message read, the station reported.
Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco told NBC News that the threat, itself, represents a serious crime whether Godfrey intended to follow through or not.
"As the victim and their family, imagine getting that notification from the sheriff's office, 'Hey we need to protect you.' This individual may have thought it was funny, maybe thought they were committing a joke. This is not a joke," Nocco told reporters Friday, the network reported.
According to WTVT, Godfrey confessed to sending the messages as a joke when questioned by authorities, who had obtained a search warrant for the Instagram account
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