Dillard Middle/High School was on lockdown while a 12-year-old was being detained for firing a BB gun at a faculty member on campus, Fort Lauderdale police said.
It started about 9 a.m. Friday at 2501 N.W. 11th St., said police spokeswoman Casey Liening.
“He was in class, being disruptive [and] the teacher told him to report to the front office,” she said.
There were two faculty members in the administration office at the time. When one went to leave, the boy — a recent transfer student — pulled what appeared to be a handgun from his backpack, according to Police Chief Rick Maglione, who went to the school Friday afternoon.
“[The student] pointed the firearm at the faculty member and pulled the trigger multiple times,” said Liening. “Nobody was injured.”
Citing the ongoing investigation, police would not say if the gun was loaded or if it misfired but they did confirm it was a BB gun.
“It is a BB gun that appears to be a real gun,” she said. “It does not have the orange tip [on the barrel] or any indicators that it’s a fake gun.”
The incident happened at 9:02 a.m., the schools were on code red lockdown by 9:03 a.m., and the student was in police custody by at 9:07 a.m.
“Very quickly, there was a male faculty member who was able to detain this 12-year-old,” Liening said.
Officers searched the school to confirm this was an isolated incident and the lockdown was lifted by 9:39 a.m., police said.
“He will be charged with multiple charges including at least one felony,” she said.
The South Florida Sun Sentinel is not identifying the student because he is a juvenile.
wkroustan@sunsentinel.com or 954-356-4303 or Twitter @WayneRoustan
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