Student caught with gun while walking through metal detectors at Vero Beach High School

VERO BEACH, Fla. (CBS12) — The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office said a Vero Beach High School student was arrested after he brought a gun to school.

Captain Joe Abollo, a spokesman for the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office (IRCSO), said Thursday morning that the student identified as Michael Bell was walking through a metal detector at the high school when one of the machines alerted school staff that something was in his backpack.

See also:‘In cold blood’: accused killer stabbed man 45 times, could have tried a second time: PSLPD

Officers pulled 18-year-old Bell aside and found a 9mm handgun in his backpack, IRCSO says. There were no bullets in the chamber, but there were 10 rounds in the gun’s magazine, according to the sheriff’s office.

When officers checked the gun’s serial number, they discovered it had been stolen in Okeechobee County.

The sheriff’s office says Bell was taken to the Indian River County Jail, where he made no statements. Deputies say there was no indication he posed a threat to anyone; “he just had a firearm at school.”

Find more ways to stay up to date with the latest local news. Sign up for our newsletter to get the day’s top headlines straight to your inbox. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for the biggest stories and the video must not be missing.