Thief River Falls (trfnews.i234.me) — A Thief River Falls teenager has been charged with felony terroristic threats after video messages frightened two other teens.
Court papers say Elijah Lee Louis Belgarde, 18, of Thief River Falls, is charged with one count of felony terroristic threats. Police arrested him after a report on the night of November 30.
According to the complaint, a teenage girl contacted police around 9:09 p.m. She said Belgarde had sent her friend, who is also a juvenile, video messages through Snapchat.
The videos reportedly showed Belgarde holding what looked like a handgun. In a separate message directed to the teen, he told her that he would “blast her face off.”
The teen told officers she was scared and believed the gun was real. She said she had already told Belgarde that it was not cool to have the gun because she thought it was an actual firearm.
The complaint says officers later spoke with Belgarde. He allegedly admitted to sending a video of himself to music while holding a gun.
Belgarde reportedly told the officer the gun was a Glock 19 CO2-powered BB pistol, not a real handgun. The teen and her friend later identified the BB pistol as the gun they saw in the video messages.
Both teens told police they feared Belgarde might shoot them. One friend said she asked if he was serious. Belgarde allegedly replied that it did not mean he would shoot the teen. The teens told officers they did not know what he might do and actually felt he was going to carry out the threat.
The teen also described an earlier incident. She said that two days before the report, Belgarde threw the BB pistol into a vehicle owned by her cousin after he saw a police officer nearby. She again told him it was not cool, and later received the video.
Felony terroristic threats are charged under Minnesota Statutes 609.713. The law covers threats that cause reasonable fear of serious harm.
General information about Minnesota criminal cases can be found on the Minnesota Judicial Branch website. Snapchat users can review safety tools and reporting options through the app’s online help center.
The charge against Belgarde is an accusation. He is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
I’m Chris Harper reporting for TRF News.