Idaho man arrested for threats against GF

May 27, 2022
Social Media Threats Directed at Great Falls Public Schools and Community - UPDATE
Suspect Arrested after Stand-Off
GREAT FALLS, MT – At approximately 9:30pm, on May 26th, the Great Falls Police Department
(GFPD) became aware of threatening comments that were posted on the Great Falls Public
Schools (GFPS) Facebook site. The comments were alarming, threatening, and a complete
disregard to the sensitive nature of threats to schools across the country.
Detectives with the GFPD, including School Resource Officers, the Federal Bureau of
Investigations (FBI), the United States Marshals Service (USMS), alongside staff from the GFPS
worked through the night to determine if the threat was credible and if any precautions would be
required during the next school day. Officers were able to determine, with a great amount of
certainty, the subject posting the comments was not in the local area. Even still, unmarked
detectives from the police department and GFPS staff focused attention on our schools as students
arrived on the morning of May 27th.
Using the information gathered by all involved law enforcement agencies, the Cascade County
Attorney’s Office drafted emergency charging information and an arrest warrant. The Honorable
Judge Kutzman signed a $1,000,000 emergency warrant for the suspect’s arrest, for Felony
Intimidation.
John Christopher Neff was taken into custody in Coeur D’ Alene, Idaho just after 5pm today, May
27th. Prior to his arrest, Neff barricaded himself in a residence forcing a SWAT call out. The arrest
was in coordination with the USMS, the FBI and the Coeur D’ Alene police department. Throughout
the day, GFPD detectives worked tirelessly with other law enforcement agencies to make this
happen.
The GFPD and the GFPS continue to take threats to our schools and our students seriously. We
are aware the suspect in this case continued to post comments throughout the day. These
comments were monitored and collected. As with any investigation, there are details that if made
public could jeopardize the integrity of the case. In this case, officers determined there was no
‘immediate’ threat to the Great Falls Public Schools or to our community. However, the suspect
indicated multiple times, with threatening language, that he planned to travel to our community. As
such, the GFPD, and other law enforcement agencies, pursued this incident to the fullest.