Star Wars fan arrested over threat to student who revealed plot: Prosecutor

A Montana man has been arrested on suspicion of threatening to shoot a student for divulging a plot line of the newly released Star Wars film. PHOTO: WALT DISNEY PICTURES

SEATTLE (Reuters) - A Montana man has been arrested on suspicion of threatening to shoot a student for divulging a plot line of the newly released Star Wars epic, court documents showed on Tuesday.

The police say Arthur Roy, of Helena, got "angry" with a student he had befriended on Facebook after the boy gave away a subplot in Star Wars: The Force Awakens during an online conversation last week.

During the online fight that ensued, Roy is alleged to have posted a photo of himself in which he appears to brandish a gun, which he indicates is a Colt 1911 with a "hair trigger", according to a probable cause affidavit.

The affidavit also says the boy was fearful Roy was going to come to "shoot him". Roy also said he was "coming to find" the boy, whose school was placed on security "lock down" after officials saw the exchange, according to the affidavit.

"The victim was afraid it was a legitimate threat," said Melissa Broch, a deputy attorney for Lewis & Clark County. "The victim believed that the defendant might come to his school and harm him."

Star Wars: The Force Awakens opened with a record-breaking US$248 million at the North American box office, and US$529 million globally over the weekend, Walt Disney Co said on Monday.

The film is the seventh installment in a newly rebooted Star Wars franchise.

Roy was arrested on Friday on suspicion of assault with a weapon, a felony. He made an initial appearance in Lewis & Clark County Justice Court on Monday, after which he was ordered held on US$10,000 bail, Broch said.

It was unclear whether he was still in custody, she said. He is likely to be arraigned in a state district court at some point in January, she said.

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