By Paul Waldmiller
Did you know that a Florida former teacher recently plead guilty after mailing white power threats to elementary school staffers?
As schools across the State of Florida open up to having children back in the classroom, some teachers and school staff are breathing a sigh of relief after Maria Bassi Lauro, 66, was arrested and now faces a maximum of 15 years in federal prison for her role in she had “effectively been fired for poor performances,” in 2018 according to the Department of Justice statement.
The first two letters, delivered to Citrus Ridge Academy and Groveland Elementary School between the months of August and September 2018, were addressed to school administrators. Both letters contained a suspicious white powder and a note with a variation of the message, “your punishment for being a fat [expletive].”
The third letter was delivered to the Four Corners Charter School days after the second letter. This letter was addressed to a specific teacher instead of an administrator. Like the first two letters, this third letter also contained a suspicious while powder substance. It also contained a note reading, “fat ugly [expletive].” A few months later, Lauro mailed a fourth and final letter to Laurel Elementary and addressed specifically to a school administrator. It contained a blank piece of paper and blue powder, instead of white.
Law enforcement agencies and HAZMAT-trained specialists from the FBI discovered that the white powder was baking soda. In September 2019, Maria Bassi Lauro was officially charged with six counts of sending out threatening messages and perpetrating fake information, according to released statement by the Department of Justice.
There is no sentencing date available at this time for Bassi Lauro.