NYC student arrested with loaded gun after school shooting threat

A 16-year-old student has been arrested after allegedly threatening to carry out a shooting at a high school in Queens, New York City, according to the FBI and local officials. The student was found in class with a loaded handgun.

FBI Director Kash Patel said in a statement on Thursday that the agency’s National Threat Operations Center received a tip about a potential school shooting.

“Based on a quick response by the NYPD and FBI personnel, a student was arrested with a loaded firearm,” Patel said.

Police were alerted at around 11:30 a.m. to a social media post threatening a shooting at Cardozo High School in Bayside. Within minutes, NYPD officers entered the school and located the 10th grader in his classroom.

A search of his backpack uncovered a 9mm Taurus GX4 pistol with 13 rounds in the magazine, authorities said.

NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the threat was first posted on Instagram at 10:17 a.m. and flagged by the FBI, which provided the suspect’s name, date of birth, and phone number.

Parents were notified and one gave consent for officers to search the student’s belongings. Officials stated that Cardozo High School, which does not use metal detectors, had no history of gun-related incidents in the past year.

“We’re seeing a 16-year-old with a handgun in a school and threatening to shoot the school up. We could’ve been standing here making a different announcement, and that has to trouble all of us,” Mayor Adams said. “This is a real wake up call for our city, and our country.”