Jacob Scott Howell, 18, of Opelika, Alabama, is now charged in Lee County with 15 additional felony counts of possession of child sexual abuse material after investigators examining his electronic devices during a school-threat case said they found illegal files. Howell had already been arrested on a separate first-degree making-a-terrorist-threat charge tied to what Opelika police described as an alleged planned attack on Opelika High School.
The additional charges were announced by the Opelika Police Department on Sept. 3, 2026, and published by local outlets citing the department’s media release. Police said Howell was first arrested on Monday, Aug. 31, 2026, after detectives investigated a report that he had developed a plan to attack Opelika High School. During that investigation, police said, detectives discovered child sexual abuse material on his devices and arrested him again on Thursday, Sept. 3, on 15 possession counts.
School-threat investigation began Aug. 28
According to WTVM, Opelika Police School Resource Officers received the initial report on Friday, Aug. 28, 2026, after school had been released for the day. Police said the report indicated Howell had developed a plan to attack Opelika High School, and school resource officers immediately notified Opelika City Schools leadership.
Police arrested Howell on Monday, Aug. 31, and charged him with making a terrorist threat in the first degree. WTVM reported that Howell was not at school that Monday and had been banned from Opelika City Schools properties. A later Sept. 3 police release, as reported by Opelika Daily News and Wiregrass Daily News, said Howell is now banned from all school campuses in Alabama.
Police say electronic-device search led to 15 more felony charges
After Howell’s Aug. 31 arrest, he posted bond and was released from the Lee County Jail later that same afternoon, according to the Sept. 3 Opelika Police Department media release as quoted by Opelika Daily News and Wiregrass Daily News.
Police said that during the continuing investigation, detectives found what the department described as child pornography on Howell’s electronic devices. Alabama law now uses the term “child sexual abuse material” in the relevant possession statute. Howell was then arrested again on Sept. 3 and booked on 15 counts of possession.
Under Alabama Code Section 13A-12-192, knowingly possessing child sexual abuse material is a Class C felony. State law also provides that each qualifying visual depiction can be treated as a separate offense, which helps explain why investigators filed multiple counts from a single device-based investigation. The first-degree making-a-terrorist-threat charge is defined by Alabama Code Section 13A-10-241.
What the filed charges mean
The 15 newly filed counts are possession charges, not charges alleging production or distribution. In plain terms, prosecutors would have to prove that the defendant knowingly possessed prohibited child sexual abuse material. Court records available through public reporting reviewed for this story did not show any filed distribution charge, and NewsLeash is not treating investigative allegations as filed offenses.
The earlier first-degree making-a-terrorist-threat charge is separate. In general, that offense concerns an alleged threat or threatened course of conduct serious enough to meet the elements set out in Alabama law. The available public reporting in this case says police investigated what they described as a planned attack on Opelika High School; that allegation remains unproven in court.
Bond hearing and case status
Police said a bond hearing on the additional charges was scheduled for Friday, Sept. 4, 2026. NewsLeash did not locate a publicly accessible court order in the materials available online confirming the outcome of that hearing, so no result is reported here.
The investigation remains ongoing, according to Opelika police. The department has asked anyone with information to contact Opelika Police at 334-705-5200, the Secret Witness Hotline at 334-745-8665, or submit a tip through the Opelika Police mobile app.
Howell is accused, not convicted. The allegations and charges summarized above are based on police statements and published reports about filed criminal charges. He is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in court.
Sources: Wiregrass Daily News; Opelika Daily News; WTVM initial report; Alabama Code Section 13A-12-192; Alabama Code Section 13A-10-241.
