KENOSHA, Wis. – A 13-year-old boy who is believed to have been carrying a firearm in his duffel bag was arrested Thursday after he tried to enter Roosevelt Elementary School and then ran away after being approached and questioned by school staff members.
Immediately after the threat, all campuses in the Kenosha Unified School District were placed on “secure hold” while police searched for the teen.
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The boy was arrested several hours later, reports the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Authorities did not confirm if a weapon was on the 13-year-old at the time of the confrontation with school staff, but they believe weapons were in the bag he was carrying at the time he tried to enter the campus, reports NBC Chicago. Kenosha Police Chief Patrick Patton also said his agency received a video of the boy wielding what looked like a gun earlier in the day.
Suspect Had Searched the Web for School Shootings
Additionally, police say the boy previously conducted several internet searches on school shootings.
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Patton praised the school employees who intervened Thursday morning, saying that only their “quick and diligent action” prevented the suspect from entering the campus and committing a possible school shooting, reports TMJ4.
The teen currently attends Mahone Middle School and was a former student of Roosevelt Elementary.