Shortly before 1:00 pm today, Harper Woods Police were notified by the Harper Woods High School administration that shots had been fired inside the school and that they were going into lock-down status. Responding officers were informed by the staff that one shot had been fired inside the school on the second floor. Officers reviewed security footage and observed a male student pull a handgun from his backpack while standing in front of his locker. The weapon discharged as he was pulling it out of the backpack. The fired round struck a locker, narrowly missing several other students standing nearby. The student put the weapon back in his locker and went to his class. Staff members identified the student, (a 16 year old male juvenile), and Harper Woods police officers took him into custody inside his classroom without incident. The handgun, a loaded .9 mm, was recovered from the student’s locker. While searching the locker, officers discovered additional .40 cal ammunition. This prompted a school-wide search of all student lockers in an attempt to locate the .40 cal gun that went with the bullets found in the original locker.
While conducted this security sweep, two more handguns were located in students’ lockers. Officers recovered an unloaded .40 cal handgun and a .32 cal handgun in two different lockers. Officers also recovered three illegal knives, two handgun magazines that did not belong to any of the recovered weapons, and narcotics. A total of five male juvenile students and one female juvenile student were taken into custody in connection with these offenses.
There were no injuries in this incident. Harper Woods detectives are investigating. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Harper Woods Police Department.
Jim Burke
Chief of Police
