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13-Year-Old Boy Charged With Assault After Striking Student With BB Gun

FORT MEADE, Md. (WJZ)—An alarming discovery is made on an Anne Arundel County school bus. Police and school officials say a young middle school student brought a BB gun and a large knife to school.

Derek Valcourt has more on how the young student was stopped.

Wednesday morning, the 13-year-old student was on a bus on the way to his school on the property of Fort Meade when authorities were alerted to the BB gun.

Officials at MacArthur Middle School sprang into action after a parent reported seeing a 13-year-old boy at a bus stop with what appeared to be a BB gun in his waistband.

School administrators greeted the bus as it arrived at the school on Rockenbach Road.

"Their information was that it was a male student, so the female students were let off the bus. The male students they then took into the administrative offices and interviewed," said Bob Mosier, Anne Arundel County Schools spokesman.

Administrators found the BB gun along with a 7-inch long knife inside the student's backpack.

School police then took control of the investigation.

"We don't know at this point what his intention was," said Justin Mulcahey, Anne Arundel County Police. "I can tell you through our investigation, unbeknownst to this unnamed parent who called this in, apparently earlier at the bus stop he did discharge that BB gun and struck another 13-year-old in the lower extremity, a very minor injury, fortunately."

County police and school officials are giving credit to the parent who called in to report that BB gun, saying his actions may have stopped a catastrophe.

The school principal sent a letter home to parents, detailing the BB gun incident and asking them to talk to their children about reporting any suspicious activity.

"It frightens me man because if my child was on that bus I would be very concerned about what could possibly happen. Even though it was a BB gun, anything could have happened," said Maurice Mayo, parent.

"I just don't know what the parents are thinking about when they don't know what their kids are into.  How does a child get out the house with a BB gun? That's obvious in the morning," said Yvonne Shelton, bus driver.

Police have charged that 13-year-old as a juvenile with a number of citations, including  possession of a dangerous weapon on school property, second-degree assault and reckless endangerment.

He's also facing disciplinary action from the school system.

The 13-year-old boy with the BB gun is from Laurel, Md. He has been released from custody to his parents.

Related Story: 13-Year-Old Charged With Bringing BB Gun & Knife On Bus; 1 Student Struck

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