Troy man arrested within hours of posting threats on Facebook; bond denied through fair, then $100K

By Gregory Orear

General Manager/Editor

Troy Police and the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Department wasted little time in arresting a Troy man who threatened a mass shooting at the ongoing Lincoln County Fair.

Officers arrested Ryan Hartline, 27, Thursday night on a felony charge of making a terrorist threat and a misdemeanor harassment just hours after he made the threats on Facebook.

According to a probable cause statement, fair officials considered closing the fair due to the threats.

“The threat of violence towards the Lincoln County Fair and Law Enforcement made by Hartline on an open social media site frightened numerous people who were planning on attending the fair, along with the Lincoln County Fair executive board members who were faced with the decision to close the County fair to keep people safe,” the PC statement reads.

Earlier in the week, but after the start of the weeklong fair, the fair board decided to enact a clear-bags only policy. A mixture of support and criticism followed, but according to investigators, Hartline’s remarks threatened violence.

“I’ma bring whatever tf I want, Got a problem? Take it up with my sidearm,” Hartline is accused of posting under the profile name of James Kovacs.

Other threats he made Thursday included insinuations of a large number of casualties.  

“Take bets, I bet it’s a lot of number before I drop” he wrote, adding “the body counts higher quicker” in another.

He also made a passing threat at law enforcement.

“I’ma just Pull off send the cop, he might get sent ‘home’ early,” court records indicate.

The detective leading the investigation reported in the probable cause statement after he arrested him, Hartline admitted to making the posts under the fake profile.

Already facing an assault charge in Shannon County, Hartline remains in custody in the Lincoln County jail without a bond as long as the fair is open, which ends tonight. After that, his bond will be set at $100,000 cash-only.

He is scheduled to make an initial court appearance before Associate Circuit Court Judge Michael Jacobs Tuesday at 1:35 p.m.