A Philadelphia high school was put on lockdown Monday morning after a freshman student tried to bring a loaded stolen handgun into the building, the school and police said.
Philadelphia police officers responded to Fels High School on Langdon Street in the Crescentville section of Northeast Philadelphia around 7:30 a.m. after the 15-year-old student was found to have the weapon as he tried to enter the school, police said.
The loaded gun was found in the student's backpack when he went through a metal detector, principal Lillian Izzard said in a letter sent home to parents and guardians.
A school officer confiscated the book bag as Philadelphia police were called.
No one was injured and the student was taken into custody.
The gun was stolen from a neighbor a few weeks ago, Capt. Sekou Kinebrew said Monday, It's unclear why the student had the gun, Kinebrew said.
The gun had been reported stolen from a car near the home of the student, who had no disciplinary problems or known issues with classmates. Kinebrew said he may have had the gun in the bag to conceal it from his parents.
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About 1,100 students attend Fels. The lockdown was lifted at 8:22 a.m. after no additional threat to students was found, the school said.
"This incident underlines the need for all off us, as a school community, to work together to ensure the safety of our school and our neighborhood," Izzard wrote in her letter.
Izzard urged parents and guardians to speak to their children about the "serious consequences" of bringing a weapon to school and also to ensure children that they can reach out to get help if they are concerned about their own safety.
The student is expected to be charged with having a gun on school property, firearms violations and theft.
