The boy hid the weapon, a Bersa Thunder .380 semi-auto handgun, next to the bike rack, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said.

HILLSBOROUGH COUNTY – A 13-year-old middle school student was arrested Thursday (April 26) after he brought a loaded gun onto school property, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said.

The boy, a student at Dowdell Middle School in Tampa, is charged with one count of possession of a weapon (firearm) on school property.

Deputies said a witness reported that the boy first had a firearm in his backpack, then put it inside a large tractor tire outside of the school next to the bike rack. The location of the firearm was reported to school staff and the school resource deputy who found the weapon, a loaded Bersa Thunder .380 semi-auto handgun.

The boy fled from the school before he was arrested. Deputies said his mother found him and brought him back to the school about 4:15 p.m. She refused to allow him to make any statement.

The boy was taken to Hillsborough County Juvenile Assignment.

Deputies said the gun did not enter the school itself because of the witness and the quick action of school staff.

Hillsborough Sheriff | Crime | Arrests | Dowdell Middle School | Tampabay News

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