Middle school student taken into custody after LAUSD police find her armed with gun, ammunition

HUNTINGTON PARK, Calif. - A middle school student was taken into custody on Friday after school police discovered she brought a gun and ammunition to school.

Los Angeles Unified School District Police received a tip that there was a student with a gun on the campus of Henry T. Gage Middle School. Officers immediately responded and the school was placed on lockdown for two hours. 

Officials say an 8th grade female student came to school with a gun. Another student reportedly saw the handgun and told a teacher who then told administrators who called police. Officers were able to locate the girl and found a handgun along with multiple rounds of ammunition in her backpack. 

Police recovered the weapon and took the student into custody. 

We spoke to one student who says he knows the girl responsible and that he saw her carrying the gun.

“When I saw the weapon, I thought that it was just her phone or like a bottle of perfume but when I realized it was an actual weapon I was shocked,” said student Liandro Ocampo. “I was thinking the police would come into the MPR and tell us it was ok, and me and my friends were comforting each other and telling each other it was going to be ok and turns out it was.” 

He also told FOX 11 the girl who was arrested has had prior disciplinary issues at school. 

No injuries were reported. The student was taken to a juvenile detention center and is facing gun possession charges. 

FOX 11’s Mary Stringini contributed to this report