15-year-old charged in stabbing incident at Winter Haven middle school

Polk County deputies arrested a 15-year-old Winter Haven boy after he stabbed a 14-year-old male student Wednesday at Westwood Middle School in Winter Haven, a Polk County Sheriff’s Office release said.

The 15-year-old is being charged with multiple felonies, the Sheriff’s Office said. The 14-year-old victim was transported to an area hospital and his parents have been notified.

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The incident remains under investigation and additional details could be released later. The Sheriff’s Office released the following account of the events leading to the boy’s arrest: 

Deputies responded to the middle school at 3520 Ave. J N.W. at around 1:09 p.m. after receiving a report that a student had been stabbed. The school was on lockdown status while deputies searched for the suspect.

Deputies learned the boys were fighting on campus, when the older one stabbed the victim with a fixed blade kitchen knife - similar to a paring knife.

The 15-year-old had fled the campus but was located in less than an hour. He was arrested at about 1:43 p.m. at a nearby relative’s home, according to the sheriff's office. The lockdown at the school ended around 2 p.m.

The juvenile told deputies he had thrown the knife behind a trailer, and he led deputies to the location where they found the knife.

“This is outrageous violent criminal behavior that we are not going to tolerate,” Sheriff Grady Judd said in the release. “This student is facing some serious felony charges.”

This article originally appeared on The Ledger: 15-year-old charged after stabbing at Winter Haven school