A high school kid in Arizona was detained after smuggling an AR-15 and more ammunition into the building in a lunchbox.
After receiving a tip that a firearm had been discovered on the school premises, police in Phoenix arrived at the scene of the incident at the city’s Bostrom High School on Friday, May 19.
According to the Phoenix Police Department (PPD), police ‘moved immediately’ to detain the student just before 1 o’clock in the afternoon. They were only identified as a boy student at Bostrom who was 15 years old.
‘When they arrived, officers detained a male student in the school’s main office,’ PPD said. ‘The student was found to be in possession of a semi-automatic rifle. Additional ammunition was found in the student’s backpack and lunchbox.’
It is unclear if a staff member or student first noticed the weapon and ammunition.
PPD said the incident was still under investigation. A possible motive and exactly what charges the minor is facing have not yet been released.
Phoenix Unified School District thanked police for their quick response to the frightening situation.
‘The safety and wellbeing of our staff, students, and visitors remain our top priority, and we will work with law enforcement as they continue to investigate,’ the district stated.
The United States has seen a major spike in mass shootings in 2023, including those taking place on school campuses.
In March, a shooter armed with a rifle and a handgun broke into a private Christian elementary school in Nashville, Tennessee and fired 152 rounds, killing three adults and three students.
The incident in Phoenix happened almost one year after a gunman entered Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas armed with an AR-15.
The shooter killed 19 students and two teachers at the elementary school, making it the third deadliest school shooting in US history.