A 13-year-old boy is in custody after allegedly attempting to enter a Kenosha, Wisconsin, elementary school with a gun Thursday morning before getting scared off by a staff member, according to police.
The Kenosha Police Department said just after 9 a.m. Thursday, a suspicious boy walked into a secured area in the school with a backpack.
When the boy was approached by a school staff member, he immediately fled. All schools in the Kenosha Unified School District (KUSD) were then placed under a school hold, meaning business as usual inside buildings with nobody allowed to enter or exit.
Police said during a press conference they received several tips about the suspect being in the area, which ultimately led to them locating the suspect, a 13-year-old KUSD student. Responding officers convinced the teenager to surrender before he was arrested.
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In a video shared by police during the press conference, the arrested teenager is seen holding a rifle inside a home.
Officials said the video shows the teen appearing to practice “room entry techniques.”
Investigators also learned the teen searched school shootings on the internet before Thursday’s incident.
“We believe that this was actually an armed suspect with a firearm, and there was no legitimate reason to enter the school,” Kenosha Police Chief Patrick Patton said. “The only reason the individual was not able to fully enter the school was because of the quick and diligent actions of the school staff.”
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KUSD Superintendent Jeff Weiss told reporters the teen attempted to enter the elementary school multiple times, explaining the student checked several doors and entrances before going to the secured entry.
“Today we experienced something that all school staff and families fear, a potential school shooting,” Weiss said.
Weiss emphasized that when Roosevelt was constructed, it was built to get students out in the event of a fire, not for challenges schools face today, such as shootings.
In a letter obtained by FOX 6 in Milwaukee, which was sent to the school community, Weiss informed parents safety work done as a district prevented further tragedy.
“Our staff and students, along with law enforcement partners, regularly review, plan and drill for incidents like the one we encountered at Roosevelt this morning. We do not take this lightly,” Weiss said. “We are thankful for the secured entrance at Roosevelt Elementary School that prevented easy access to the building and our students and staff. We are thankful for our staff who bravely stop the individual and ask questions that cause the individual to question their choices and flee.
“We are thankful for multiple law enforcement agencies who stepped up to surround our schools, not just in Kenosha Unified, but throughout the county,” he added. “We are thankful for our staff who continue to work with our children, your children, our students throughout the day to provide as much normalcy as possible, despite their own fears that they may be facing. We are thankful for our families who trusted us to work with law enforcement to keep their children safe.”
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