Juvenile arrested after bringing AR-15 to North Carolina high school basketball game

RALEIGH, North Carolina – A male juvenile was arrested at the Millbrook High School basketball game on Thursday night after police located an AR-15 in his possession during the boys basketball team's second round game in the NCHSAA 4A state tournament against Durham Hillside.

The Raleigh Police Department received a call about a person with a gun at the school at approximately 8:40 p.m. An investigation that involved Raleigh police, the Wake County Sheriff's Office, and Wake County Public School's Security revealed a male juvenile with an AR-15 in his possession.  The suspect is not a student at Millbrook High School and was arrested and taken into custody immediately.

There were no injuries.

Dr. Brian Saunders, the principal of Millbrook, released a message to the school's parents and staff on Thursday night that read: 

"I apologize for the late evening message. I want to make you aware of an incident that occurred this evening. Tonight, during our men's basketball game, an attendee at the game was found to be in possession of a firearm.

Students and staff are safe.

Law enforcement received information about the subject and responded immediately by quickly locating the suspect. They confirmed that he had an AR-15 in his possession and removed him from our campus. Their investigation of the incident is ongoing and we will update you as soon as we have additional information. At this point, we can confirm that the suspect is NOT a student at Millbrook High School.

We are grateful for the Wake County Sheriff's Office and the Raleigh Police Department for their immediate response. The best means to keep schools safe is to maintain healthy and open relationships between adults and children at all times. Please help us to continue to emphasize to students that they should feel comfortable in talking about situations that cause them concern.

Again, we thank our local law enforcement officials, our WCPSS Security Team, and our staff for their swift action in this matter. They work closely with us to ensure the safety of our students every day.

Know that we will continue to take every measure to ensure the safety of our students. Out of the abundance of caution, additional law enforcement will be on campus tomorrow. We also will have Millbrook High School counselors in place on campus to support and students who need assistance."

Police said the investigation is ongoing and additional information will be released at a later time.

Millbrook defeated Hillside, 72-45, to advance to the third round. The Wildcats are scheduled to host Jordan High School at 1 p.m. on Saturday.