A Morongo Valley man was arrested Wednesday morning for making criminal threats after he posted a photo on Facebook in which he threatened to kill people in a mass murder. About 4:30 p.m. Tuesday, Robin Rennaker, also known as Robbie Rennaker, 21, posted a photo of a gun on Facebook with the message that he was going to “carry out an attack and kill innocent civilians for the islamic state of iraq :) allahu akbar.” [sic] The Sheriff’s Department received multiple calls from residents alerting it to the threatening post. Deputies attempted multiple times Tuesday night to contact Rennaker at his home in the 49700 block of Pioneer Drive in Morongo Valley, but were unsuccessful. A search warrant was obtained, and deputies returned to Rennaker’s home Wednesday morning. As a precaution, Morongo Valley Elementary School was locked down from 8:10 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. Morongo Unified School District Superintendent Tom Baumgarten said Rennaker had not threatened the school, but because Rennaker lived just two blocks away from the school, he made the decision to lock it down as a safety precaution. During the search of Rennaker’s home, deputies found a sawed-off shotgun, ammunition, drugs, and drug paraphernalia. Deputies also seized Rennaker’s computer and electronic devices. Robin Rennaker was arrested for investigation of making criminal threats, possession of a sawed-off shotgun, violation of probation for battery, and was booked into the Morongo Basin Jail where he is being held without bail.
