Police say the loaded .22 caliber handgun was found in the backpack of a seven year old boy when he arrived at Wave Preparatory School on Briar Place Thursday morning. A flare gun was also recovered from the scene.
It was not clear if the boy knew the gun was in his backpack.
The gun was taken into custody by school safety agents. The boy was taken to the precinct.
Wave Preparatory School replaced P.S. 215, which was closed for "persistent failure."
The Education Department released the following statement:
"A lockdown was called at the PS 215Q campus by a member of the staff of WAVE Preparatory Academy. A gun was found in the bookbag of a second grade student. The gun was confiscated. NYPD, School Safety were on site. Parent of the student was notified."
Sources tell Eyewitness News the boys older brother put the gun in the backpack. The mother then found out about the situation and called school to alert officials and police.
Students said they heard chatter about the boy bringing the gun to school.
Parents were handed a sheet of paper upon dismissal about the school being locked down during the day, but there was no information given to them about the gun.
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