Xbox gamer threatened to kill player and make parents ‘disappear,’ FL cops say

A mysterious Xbox gamer living in Maine spent years threatening to kill a “juvenile” player in Florida and burn the family’s home, according to investigators in northeast Florida.

James Maynard, 32, was arrested April 25 and charged with making “written or electronic threats to kill,” the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office said in an April 29 news release. The charge is a second-degree felony.

The investigation began in November 2022 and the victim lives in Palm Coast, about a 60-mile drive south from Jacksonville.

“According to the victim, who was a juvenile at the time, an unknown suspect using an anonymous Xbox gamertag sent multiple messages containing violent threats, including threatening to kill the victim, burn their house down, and make their parents disappear,” the sheriff’s office reports.

“The victim told deputies they had received similar threats from the same suspect under a different Xbox gamertag in July 2022. Following the threats, the victim attempted to block the suspect, but the suspect repeatedly altered their profile to continue the harassment.”

The victim noted the two had never met, and their interactions were limited to “Xbox and Snapchat,” officials said.

Detectives identified the suspect in January and obtained an arrest warrant for the man, who was living in Pittsfield, Maine, officials said.

Maynard will be extradited to Flagler County, the sheriff’s office said. His home is about a 1,400-mile drive north from the victim’s home in Palm Coast.

The investigation continues and “additional charges may be pending,” the sheriff’s office said.

Details of a motive behind the threats were not released.

This story was originally published April 30, 2025 at 6:37 AM with the headline "Xbox gamer threatened to kill player and make parents ‘disappear,’ FL cops say."