Police were called on Alpharetta High School students during prank wars with toy guns, masks

The Alpharetta Police Department said a high school prank could have had deadly consequences.

On Sunday night, police found kids in masks with guns, which turned out to be airsoft guns.

Alpharetta police said earlier on Tuesday, that an annual high school prank fest known as “Junior/Senior Wars” could’ve taken a turn for the worst.

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“The call came out as a home invasion. There were individuals, actors, who were wearing masks and carrying long guns rifles,” said Alpharetta Department of Public Safety Captain Jakai Braithwaite.

When the call came in Sunday around 11:30 p.m., Alpharetta Police responded in full force.

And there were tense moments when they found a group of masked people with weapons.

“The bottom line is face coverings with guns, you know what that’s a recipe for,” said Captain Braithwaite.

But when officers found the group off Old Milton Parkway, “they showed incredible restraint.”

Police said the teens were students at Alpharetta High School in the midst of Junior-Senior wars. It’s an event usually marked with throwing eggs and toilet paper. But officers say while this was just kids having fun and no one was injured, officers had to make split-second decisions about threats.

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Alpharetta Police are now warning parents, that teens with weapons that look real could be met with deadly force.

“Please don’t put an officer in that situation,” said Braithwaite.

“Sure you can say at the end of the day the officer would be found as a justified shooting…he or she has to live or would have to live with the fact that they shot a kid with a toy,” said Braithwaite. “To Mom and Dad, we are asking you to please understand the severity of this. Explain to them why this is a bad idea.”

The teens were not charged or cited, since there was no property damage or any injuries. But their parents were called.

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