Police: Teen suspected in Texas school shooting in custody
Oct 6, 2021, 10:15 AM | Updated: 12:40 pm
(WFAA/CNN)
(WFAA/CNN)
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — An 18-year-old student who opened fire during a fight at his Dallas-area high school and injured four people on Wednesday has been taken into custody, authorities said.
Timothy George Simpkins fled from Timberview High School in Arlington after the Wednesday morning shooting and drove off in a silver Dodge Charger, police said.
The Arlington Police Department tweeted hours after the shooting that Simpkins had been taken into custody without incident and charged with multiple counts of aggravated assault with a gun.
The shooting stemmed from a fight that broke out in a classroom, Arlington Assistant Police Chief Kevin Kolbye said at a news conference. Two people were shot and two others had unspecified injuries, he said. At least three of the injured are students, and three of the four injured were taken to hospitals for treatment, he said.
“This is not a random act of violence,” he said. “This is not somebody attacking our school.”
Timberview serves about 1,900 students in ninth through 12th grades. The sprawling complex opened in 2004.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. AP’s earlier story follows below.
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — A student opened fire inside a Texas high school during a fight, injuring four people before he fled, authorities said Wednesday.
The shooting happened at Timberview High School in Arlington, which is part of the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area. Two people were shot and two others had unspecified injuries, Arlington Assistant Police Chief Kevin Kolbye said at a news conference.
Three of the four were taken to hospitals and the other person refused treatment, he said.
Police were searching for the suspected shooter, whom they identified as 18-year-old Timothy George Simpkins. They said he might be driving a 2018 silver Dodge Charger with the license plate number PFY-6260.
“We feel confident that the shooter will be located very, very soon,” Republican Gov. Greg Abbott told reporters hours after the shooting during a visit to the Texas-Mexico border.
Kolbye said the shooting happened after a fight broke out.
“This is not a random act of violence,” he said. “This is not somebody attacking our school.”
Timberview serves about 1,900 students in ninth through 12th grades. The sprawling complex opened in 2004.
After news of the shooting spread, parents gathered at the about 5 miles (8 kilometers) from campus to be reunified with their kids, who were bused over from the school. Among them was Justin Rockhold, whose ninth-grade son had texted him to let him know he was OK.
Rockhold said he has served in the military and he used that experience to instruct his son, telling him to keep his head down and be still to stay safe. When asked whether he had thought about a shooting happening, the father said his military training is also a reminder of life’s dangerous realities.
“Obviously in America — in the world we live in today — it’s always something … it’s in the back of your mind,” Rockhold said, adding that his prayers are with the injured. “I’m just blessed today that my kid’s safe.”
The shooting happened just days after a shooting at a Houston charter school that injured an administrator. Texas’ deadliest school shooting occurred in May of 2018 when a then-17-year-old armed with a shotgun and a pistol opened fire at Santa Fe High School near Houston, killing 10 people, most of whom were students.
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An earlier version of this story was corrected to reflect that the suspect’s last name is Simpkins, not Simpkin.
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Bleed reported from Little Rock, Arkansas.
