2 Boys Charged For Loaded Gun On Lakewood School Bus: Police

LAKEWOOD, NJ — (UPDATED, 4:30 p.m.) Two elementary school boys have been charged with possession of a weapon on school grounds as authorities continue to investigate how a loaded .22-caliber handgun wound up in one student's backpack Tuesday, Lakewood police said.

The boys — one a 10-year-old fifth-grader, the other a 9-year-old fourth-grader — have been charged with possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose and possession of a weapon on school grounds, Lakewood Detective Lt. Gregory Staffordsmith said Tuesday afternoon.

A student who saw the handgun reported it to an administrator immediately after getting off the bus, said Michael Inzelbuch, the attorney for the Lakewood School District, during a roundtable meeting that was livestreamed by The Lakewood Scoop. Inzelbuch said it was the Lakewood High School principal.

Lakewood Superintendent Laura Winters said district policy in incidents such as the one Tuesday is that the student involved is not permitted to return to school until the full investigation is completed and a disciplinary hearing held with the family. That means the boy who brought the handgun on the bus will not be returning Wednesday or possibly for a few days.

Security video from the school bus, which was released to Patch, shows the 10-year-old getting on the bus. A short time later the 9-year-old gets on. Halfway through the video the boys open a backpack and the 9-year-old shows the weapon to the 10-year-old, who was seated behind him. The video then shows the two boys handling the weapon. One loads the magazine with bullets and there are comments that ensue about bullets being dropped. The boys then show the handgun to students seated a few rows behind them on the bus, and other students can be seen handling the weapon.

When they return to their seats closer to the front of the bus, the boys can be seen stashing it in the 10-year-old's backpack. The video shuts off before the students get off the bus.

Inzelbuch, during the roundtable, said district officials, police and the bus company would be meeting Wednesday to discuss the incident and ensure all bus procedures were folllowed.

The 9-year-old was arrested when the school bus arrived at the school; the 10-year-old was charged later. The fourth-grader allegedlly threatened to shoot another student, according to a report in The Lakewood Scoop.

Winters said parents were notified by robocall about 11:15 a.m., which was shortly after news media got wind of the situation and reported on it, a fact that angered some. Winters said that was an issue outo out of the district's hands, due to police scanners.

Winters and Lakewood police said because police and the district's security personnel responded so quickly, arresting the student and securing the gun, there was no need for a lockdown.

That said, Winters said the district is looking to purchasing metal detectors for the elementary schools. The high school and middle school already are equipped with them, she said.

The investigation is continuing into how the boy got the weapon, which was found in his backpack when their school bus arrived at Oak Street Elementary School, Staffordsmith said.

Staffordsmith said more information would be released as it becomes available.

Note: This article has been updated to clarify the sequence of events.

Photo: Screengrab from video released by Lakewood police