TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services (FDACS) Office of Agricultural Law Enforcement (OALE) announced Thursday it has identified and charged an individual following a bomb threat made against an OALE agricultural inspection station in late March 2022.
Charles Leslie Aikens of Liberty County, Florida, who was being held at the Wakulla County Jail on unrelated charges, has been charged with a second degree felony in relation to this threat.
“Threatening to detonate an explosive with the intent to kill individuals is an extremely serious felony offense. I’m grateful to our dedicated ag law enforcement officers for their work to quickly track down the responsible individual, protecting the lives and property of all involved,” Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services Nikki Fried said. “I hope this arrest sends a strong message to anyone who may consider making threats against our officers or our facilities: you will be caught, and you will face the full weight of the law.”
On March 29, 2022, FDACS OALE received notification from the Gilchrist County Sheriff’s Office (GCSO) that an unidentified male subject had called GCSO Dispatch and threatened violence against an OALE agricultural inspection station. The subject stated that he was going to “blow up the agricultural center” and kill its occupants.
OALE investigators were able to gather call history from GCSO dispatch and associate Charles Leslie Aikens with the phone number that was used to call GCSO and make the threats.
On April 8, 2022, acting on evidence obtained during the investigation, OALE investigators secured an arrest warrant for Aikens from the 2nd Judicial Circuit for the following charge: Violation of Section 790.164, Florida Statutes, False reports concerning planting a bomb, explosive, or weapon of mass destruction in, or committing arson against, state-owned property, or concerning the use of firearms in a violent manner; Second degree felony; 1 count.
The warrant was served on Aikens in the Wakulla County jail where he was being held on unrelated charges.
