A teacher made a surprising discovery while giving a student a helping hand.
A loaded gun was accidentally found in the backpack of a 5-year-old at Principia Lower School in Town & Country, Missouri. Police opened an investigation.
It appears a teacher was helping the young student around 8:45 a.m. Friday in an empty classroom when he found the gun. Quickly, the staff took the bag from him and handed it to the police. No one was hurt.
“We wanted our parents to know that there was never a threat or risk to any of our students or members of the community,” Principal Merry Sorrells said. She assures that everyone in the school has been informed of the incident.
It appears that the child’s parents were cooperative with the school administration throughout the day.
Town & Country Police Chief James Cavins says the Family Services Division is involved in the investigation. Investigators believe the 5-year-old who brought the gun to school had no “intent”, that it was done “inadvertently”.
There would be no negligence on the part of the student’s parents at this stage of the investigation, according to Chief Cavins. He encourages all parents to make sure firearms are safe in their homes.
