Burnsville High School student arrested after loaded gun found in backpack

Mara H. Gottfried, Pioneer Press
Updated ·1 min read
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A gun was discovered Tuesday at Burnsville High School and police called in other agencies during a search for a second gun, which was not found.

The school reported at 10:40 a.m. Tuesday that they suspected two students had guns and staff had already confirmed one in a student’s backpack.

“Given the dangerous circumstances of the presence of weapons, Burnsville police officers and several mutual aid agencies responded quickly and tactically in order to ensure the safety of all students and staff,” said Carissa Larsen, Burnsville spokesperson, in a statement.

The gun found by staff was loaded and officers secured it.

Principal Jesús Sandoval wrote in a message to families there “is no evidence a specific threat was made. There was no apparent conflict between students that led to the weapon being brought to school or shown.

“This doesn’t change the fact that this was very dangerous and completely unacceptable,” his message continued. “Weapons of any kind are not allowed at school and the consequences for a student can be significant, even if there is no intent to harm others.”

Sandoval added he knew there “were concerns about potential threats on social media. Our investigation did not reveal any actual threats.”

Police took the student who had a gun into custody. The other student was briefly detained and released when no firearms were found on him.

The case will be forwarded to prosecutors for charging consideration.

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