Teenager Charged with Bringing Weapon to Elementary School

A 17-year-old Arlington boy has been charged with brandishing a firearm on school property.

Shortly before 1 p.m. Wednesday, the teenager approached two 10-year-old boys who were riding their bikes in the playground area at Abingdon Elementary School. The teen was brandishing what investigators now know to be a BB gun, according to information police released today.

"He made threatening remarks to the kids: 'Do you want to die today?' and things along those lines," Arlington police spokesman Dustin Sternbeck said.

The teen left. The mother of one of the boys was nearby, and they told her what happened. She called the police.

Meanwhile, the teenager went to a friend's house not far from the school, Sternbeck said. There, he changed shirts and stashed the gun.

Soon after, the teens were outside hanging out with a small group of friends. Police stopped, questioned them individually and determined the identity of the teenager from the Abingdon incident, Sternbeck said. Officers were able to recover the gun and the shirt the teen was originally wearing.

Sternbeck would not release the name of the alleged attacker. Anyone under 18 is considered a juvenile in Virginia.

The teenager was taken to the Arlington County Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court. He was later released to his parents.

"I don't know his intent, if it was intimidation or whether he was trying to be funny or what. The intent's unknown. And now he's going to pay the price," Sternbeck said. "It could be a case of just making a poor decision. I don't know."

School was not in session Wednesday because of spring break, though the playground area was open.