ENUMCLAW, Wash. — Three masked teens broke into Enumclaw High School Saturday night in what police say appeared to be a school shooting “dry run.”
The three suspects, two of whom are students at the school, broke into the building by repeatedly pulling on a door until it broke open, triggering an alarm to police, KIRO reports. Video surveillance shows the trio roaming the halls.
“One was filming the entire event. And then one was moving around with a handgun in his hands. And they would stop and talk to each other for a moment. It gave us an indication that this was a practice run,” said Enumclaw Police Chief Floyd. “In my 28 years, I’ve seen a lot of break-ins at schools, right? And every single one of them involves theft or damage. That didn’t happen here at all. And now looking at the video from start to finish with all the different angles, it became very clear, at least in my mind and some of our other commanding staff, what we were witnessing.”
The oldest involved student, an 18-year-old male, turned himself into police Monday night. The younger student was arrested in school on Tuesday and brought to the King County Juvenile Detention Center. The third suspect is not a student at the school and lives in California.
When talking to investigators, the 18-year-old student said they broke into the school as “reconnaissance” for a senior prank in which they planned to fill the lunch room with balloons. It was determined that the weapon in the surveillance video was an airsoft gun. Floyd said the situation could have been worse since the suspects fled the building shortly before police arrived, noting it is difficult to tell the difference between a real firearm and an airsoft gun in the dark.
“He has that gun in his hand. Our officer was too far away to see that but had that officer been 20 seconds faster, they’d of been face-to-face, and it potentially could have been bad,” he said. “All over the planning of a senior prank. This could have had the potential to be a very tragic event.”
RELATED: Police: Gun Scare at Daytona Beach High School ‘Cruel Prank’
The 18-year-old was booked under a count of criminal trespass, and Floyd said he is working with prosecutors to bring charges against the other suspects. The Enumclaw School District said the students will face penalties in accordance with state law.
“Student and staff safety is our priority, and we are relieved that the police investigation determined there was no plan to harm others and that the weapon involved was an airsoft replica. We take these incidents very seriously,” Enumclaw School District spokesperson Jessica McCartney wrote in a statement. “Even as a ‘prank,’ the behavior created real fear and disruption for students, families, and staff.”
Enumclaw Police said there will be an increased police presence at the school through Wednesday “out of an abundance of caution.”
