Logan Police: Teen Brought Stolen Firearm To School
Oct 8, 2019, 7:12 PM | Updated: 7:29 pm
LOGAN, Utah — Logan Police said the gun a 16-year-old brought to Fast Forward High School was one of multiple guns reported stolen out of Preston, Idaho.
Sometime Monday morning, Logan Police said the 16-year-old male showed a firearm to some of his classmates. At lunchtime, a student reported the incident to the main office.
It was a situation principal Jill Lowe hoped would never come to Fast Forward High School, but she was grateful it was resolved peacefully.
“Pretty proud of our kids for coming forward and letting us know that the student had the gun,” Lowe said. “(It) could have been different had that not happened.”
Lowe notified a school resource officer, who then called for additional officers.
“As soon as we called the police, we put the school into lockdown,” Lowe said. “Our students followed protocol, our teachers followed protocol.”
Logan Police Chief Gary Jensen said the student was located a short time after.
“They were able to find this young man off campus,” Jensen said. “It was lunchtime, about 12:30, and they found this young man with several other juveniles, and were able to take him into custody safely.”
A day later, questions remained as to why the student reportedly brought the gun to school. Jensen said a language barrier was adding to those challenges, but investigators do not believe he ever threatened other students with the firearm.
“In this day and age, it’s hard to know where the intent lies,” Jensen said. “The fact that he brought it to school, is ill-intent for me, but him actually threatening is still a question.”
Additionally, Jensen said a database check on the weapon showed it reported as being stolen from Preston, Idaho, in a theft where multiple firearms were taken. Investigators are working to figure out how the gun then ended up in the hands of a teenager.
“We’re trying to understand that case from Preston, and bringing it together with our case, and working from there,” Jensen said.
Lowe informed parents that additional counselors would be on-hand Tuesday for students who may want to seek that help. She said the student who brought the firearm to school was a new student and that he would not be coming back to the school.
“We hear about this stuff happening and it’s pretty scary when it happens here at home,” Lowe said. “You never think that’s going to happen, so we train for it. We work with our law enforcement.”