ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. – News4JAX on Thursday obtained discovery material, including emails and social media posts, in the case against Aiden Fucci, the now-15-year-old charged with first-degree murder in the death of 13-year-old Tristyn Bailey.
Dozens of emails were sent to the principal of Patriot Oaks Academy, where Fucci and Bailey were schoolmates, deputies with the St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office, and prosecutors, documents from the State Attorney’s Office show.
Here’s what News4JAX has learned from digging through the 116 pages of documents provided:
Email details what Fucci’s friend told investigators
One email includes details from Fucci’s friend about the hours surrounding the beloved cheerleader’s death in May 2021.
That email consisted of bullet points of what Fucci’s friend told deputies. According to the documents, the email shows he said Fucci became infuriated. What he was infuriated about was redacted in the email.
It goes on to say that Bailey was threatened with a knife because of jealousy and Fucci mentioned several times he wanted to kill someone in the woods.
According to the email, Fucci’s friend said he invited Bailey out the night she was last seen alive and met at his house. He told detectives that he gave Fucci a sweatshirt and that he believes Fucci may have had a bag of clothes in the woods to change into. He said his sweatshirt hadn’t been found and was adamant Fucci wasn’t wearing the same clothes he left in.
Fucci’s friend told the deputy he believes the killing was “100% premeditated,” according to the documents.
In the documented email, the friend also expressed concern that his family could be harmed by Fucci.
He also told investigators he feels responsible because he was the one who invited Bailey out that night.
TIMELINE: The investigation into Tristyn Bailey’s disappearance and death
Fucci is accused of stabbing Bailey more than 100 times in a wooded area inside the Durbin Crossing community in St. Johns. Her body was found several hours later on Mothers Day last year — less than a half-mile from Fucci’s home in the neighborhood, where Bailey also lived. He was arrested in the early morning hours the day after the discovery. According to investigators, his DNA was on Bailey’s body.
Fucci will be in court on Aug. 31. He is scheduled to go to trial in November.
Social media posts fuel fear
The new documents also reveal disturbing tips that the Patriot Oaks Academy principal and detectives received about Bailey’s tragic death.
Screenshots of Instagram posts show the dark side of social media following the killing.
The discovery material also includes roughly 20 emails and voicemails sent to the K-8 school in the days after the death of the teenage girl whose favorite color was aqua.
“I just wanted to know if you have any information or if anyone has told you about some of the disturbing things at your school have been posting about the recently murdered Tristyn Bailey,” one caller said.
According to the documented emails, students, parents and other members of the public shared concerns about the social media accounts mocking the tragedy by claiming to be involved or by threatening violence.
Also released are Instagram posts that contain photos of guns, a knife, boys holding guns and threats of a school shooting.
Parents of students at POA were terrified that there were others involved in Bailey’s killing still out there and were going to commit other acts of violence. They were calling and emailing school officials, demanding that everything be done to ensure their children’s safety.
One person even emailed the school to say that one of those involved was Connor Pridgen, who was convicted of the “thrill” killing of Makia Coney in 2010 and is serving life in prison.