A St. Peters man is behind bars after police say he threatened to shoot up his child's school and sent a series of chilling text messages to his ex-girlfriend, prompting both of her children's schools to go into lockdown. Joseph C. Shoop now faces felony charges of making a terrorist threat and harassment, and he was already out on bond for threatening to kill the same woman when he was arrested again.
Victim Reported Repeated Calls and Threats
According to FOX 2, the victim contacted police on October 8 to report that Shoop had repeatedly called her and sent threatening text messages. Among the messages police reviewed, Shoop allegedly wrote, “I'm gonna make you watch me kill your child,” and in another message threatened, “I'm killing you both and leaving [the victim's other child] for the wolves.” A separate text read, “you can feel how [I] feel when you see the life leave her eyes,” the station reported.
Shoop also claimed in messages that he was armed outside the child's school and threatened to go inside and start shooting, telling the victim in one text, “answer my call or I will take this gun in the school with me,” per the same account. The victim alerted personnel at both schools her children attend, and both schools were placed on lockdown at the time, according to the report.
Already Out on Bond for a Prior Threat
At the time of this arrest, Shoop was already out on bond for a separate first-degree harassment case stemming from an earlier threat to kill the same victim, the station's report notes. Police also said Shoop has a prior felony conviction for unlawful use of a firearm.
The St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney's Office has now charged Shoop with first-degree making a terrorist threat and first-degree harassment. He remains jailed on a $200,000 cash-only bond.
What the Charges Carry Under Missouri Law
Under Missouri law, first-degree making a terrorist threat is classified as a class D felony, according to the Missouri Revisor of Statutes. A version of the first-degree harassment statute scheduled to take effect July 1, 2027, classifies the offense generally as a class E felony, with a class D classification for specified qualifying prior offenses, per a separate section of the Missouri Revisor of Statutes.
Part of a Broader Pattern of School Threats
Shoop's case arrives amid what federal authorities have described as a troubling trend. The U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Missouri said schools in the St. Louis area and around the country have seen an alarming increase in threats, which drain resources from schools and the law enforcement agencies that respond, according to the Eastern District of Missouri. Just last week, schools across Franklin County, Missouri, were placed in secure mode due to a threatening social media post, the sheriff's office told First Alert 4.
Other Missouri districts have faced similar disruptions in recent memory. Multiple schools received potential threats that led to soft lockdowns, arrests and class cancellations, with Southern Boone Public Schools dismissing students early and two students arrested, and Blair Oaks School District near Jefferson City entering a soft lockdown after a threat was directed at the school, according to KRCG 13. Ladue High School also canceled classes for a day after a bomb threat prompted a police investigation, that report noted.
