Mom accused of threatening Cocoa High School over lunch portion was misidentified, family says

Anaya Metoya Smith, 41, is accused of leaving school threatening voicemail

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. – A mother accused of making a bomb threat to Cocoa High School months ago left the school a voicemail threatening it over her son’s school lunch portions, according to a police affidavit.

Records show Anaya Metoya Smith, 41, was booked at the Brevard County jail Wednesday.

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A probable cause affidavit filed by Cocoa police on April 7 says Smith left a voicemail with Cocoa High School the evening of Feb. 3 threatening to “blow that mother [expletive] up” over the amount of food her son was being given at lunch.

The voicemail was just one of four bomb threats made to the school from February to March, prompting an FBI investigation after police found two of the threats were made outside of Florida.

Smith’s son, who was no longer at the school by the time the April 7 affidavit was filed, had been in a verbal argument with a cafeteria worker the day the threat was made because he wanted extra food, police said.

An officer who claimed to have had numerous encounters with Smith as recent as January said he recognized her voice from the message on the school’s answering machine, the affidavit stated.

Smith faces a felony charge of making a false report to bomb state property and a misdemeanor charge of interfering with school administrative functions.

When Smith bonded out of the Brevard County jail Thursday afternoon, she embraced her sister, who told News 6 Smith was misidentified.

‘’She’s been falsely accused based on documentation that was messed up at Cocoa High School,’’ Andrea Johnson said.

Johnson said the phone number on the school caller ID was not Smith’s number.

News 6 called the number listed in the police report but it was out of service.

Smith’s family also claimed the student named in the arrest report is not Smith’s son.

‘’It’s all going to be cleared up and we’re going to take care of her, but there are definitely some people who need to be held accountable because this is not the way that it’s supposed to go,’’ Johnson said.

When asking to interview Cocoa police about the allegations, News 6 was told no comment beyond the report.


About the Authors:

Brandon, a UCF grad, joined the ClickOrlando team in November 2021. Before joining News 6, Brandon worked at WDBO.

James joined News 6 in March 2016 as the Brevard County Reporter. His arrival was the realization of a three-year effort to return to the state where his career began. James is from Pittsburgh, PA and graduated from Penn State in 2009 with a degree in Broadcast Journalism.

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