'I Think About Murdering Somebody': Fortnite Player Arrested After Voice-Chat Audio Was Sent to the FBI

An Alabama 'Fortnite' player was arrested after Epic Games alerted the FBI to statements attributed to him in voice-chat audio, including that he thought about 'murdering somebody in cold blood' every day. The recording also allegedly included a threat to shoot FBI agents if they came to his home.

Edward Lee Frith Jr, 29, was arrested on 23 September 2026 and indicted on one count under 18 U.S.C. § 875(c), according to court reporting. He pleaded not guilty the following day and remains in custody pending trial.

Affidavit Describes Alleged Threats

According to an affidavit supporting the criminal complaint, Epic made a voluntary emergency disclosure to the FBI's national threat-response team on 20 September concerning the 'Fortnite' account WagesOfNinja.

The affidavit was sworn by FBI Special Agent Bryan Engle on 21 September. It says an audio recording of the statements was provided to the bureau's Mobile field office in southern Alabama.

Engle stated that he reviewed the recording and found that the passages reproduced in the affidavit were fairly and accurately transcribed.

One passage attributed to the speaker reads: 'i think about it every day every day i think about murdering somebody in cold blood but i don't do it because i like my freedom'.

The affidavit also quotes an alleged threat against agents: 'Let's see if the FBI is going to show up at my door because I'll shoot them motherf***ers too.'

The filing contains additional statements involving violence against police. Those statements are attributed to Frith by investigators; their authorship and legal significance remain matters for the criminal proceedings.

Investigators Linked Account to Alabama Resident

The affidavit says Epic provided information associated with the WagesOfNinja account, including a legal name. Investigators used the account information to identify Frith, who was described as a resident of Fairhope in Baldwin County, Alabama.

The filing also says the account had been accessed more than 1,700 times from IP addresses geolocating to Alabama. IP geolocation formed part of the account evidence described by investigators, rather than independently establishing who was using the account on each occasion.

The affidavit does not explain how the recording was first captured or how Epic initially obtained it.

That limitation is separate from the company's published explanation of its voice-reporting feature. Epic says that, when voice reporting is enabled, the last five minutes of chat are captured on a rolling basis and stored on a participant's device.

Under that feature, audio is submitted to Epic when a participant files a voice report. The affidavit does not establish that this process was the source of the recording in Frith's case.

Federal Charge Concerns Threatening Communications

Frith faces one count under 18 U.S.C. § 875(c). The provision applies to a person who transmits, in interstate or foreign commerce, a communication containing a threat to kidnap any person or a threat to injure another person.

The statute provides for a fine, imprisonment of not more than five years, or both. That is the maximum penalty specified by the provision, not a mandatory sentence or a prediction of the outcome in Frith's case.

The charge concerns the alleged transmission of threatening communications. It is not a charge of murder or attempted murder, and the affidavit's references to thoughts about killing should not be confused with an allegation that Frith carried out an attack.

Frith pleaded not guilty on 24 September 2026. A detention order issued on 29 September kept him in custody pending trial, with subsequent court reporting indicating that proceedings were expected in December.