Man accused of tweeting 'I want to kill' held on $75,000 bond

Defense attorney says client is Army veteran with mental health issues

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 32-year-old man arrested two months ago after police found online threats, including, "I love to kill," will remain in jail, a judge decided Thursday.

Nicholas Roundtree was arrested Dec. 13 after the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office Intelligence Unit found disturbing posts on his Twitter account, including, "I intend to kill American woman at the market, I intend to kill American children as they play, I intend to kill Muslims as they pray."

Police went to Roundtree's Mandarin home and asked him to come downtown for an interview. According to the arrest report, he told investigators that the post was of lyrics to a cadence he learned in the military. According to the arrest report, he could see where the message could be perceived as a threat, but he never intended to carry it out.

The report said Roundtree later said he used to have fantasies about killing people, "but not lately."

Roundtree's father, Lon, told News4Jax his son is an activist who talks to groups from all over the world, some of them radicals who try to undermine the United States.

"He was arguing with them over the phone and yelling and screaming, ‘Well this is what your motto says and it is on your website.' Speaking, repeating their motto. Their motto says, 'I am going to kill children in the schoolyard and women on the street,'" Lon Roundtree said.

The elder Roundtree said his son broke down mentally while serving in Kuwait during a year he served in the U.S. Army. 

"We have tried over the years to get him somebody, to get him help, but it's not easy," Lon Roundtree said, adding he doesn't believe his son would ever seriously hurt anyone.

Nicholas Roundtree has pleaded not guilty. Judge Mark Borello Borello has ordered a psychiatric evaluation of Roundtree. 

At Thursday's pretrial hearing Roundtree's attorney argued that the $75,000 bond be reduced because he is a veteran and has mental health issues. Borello denied that request.


About the Authors:

Zachery “Zach” Lashway anchors KPRC 2+ Now. He began at KPRC 2 as a reporter in October 2021.