Police arrest 15-year-old student with handgun

SEATTLE -- A 15-year-old student was taken into custody Thursday when he was found with an unloaded handgun in Ballard, police said Thursday.

At about 12:34 p.m., officers responded to the Interagency School, located downtown in the 800 block of 3rd Avenue, after receiving a report that a 15-year-old male student was headed to the school with a handgun, Seattle police said.

The building was subsequently locked down as officers continued to investigate.  Initial reports about the incident did not indicate any threats made by the student toward classmates or the school.

Investigators learned that the youth had several hangouts in the Ballard area.  Patrol officers conducted an extensive area search for the student and located him in the 1400 block of NW 85th Street.  He was detained and found to be in possession of an unloaded handgun.

The lockdown of the building concluded at 2:45 p.m., only 90 minutes after it began, when the school was notified that the student had been taken into custody in North Seattle.

The student was booked into the Youth Service Center (juvenile detention) for investigation of unlawful possession of a firearm.