16-05-2025
Sauder Elementary third-grader caught with loaded gun in backpack: police
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JACKSON TOWNSHIP, Ohio (WJW) — A Sauder Elementary School third-grader found with a loaded handgun in his backpack had previously threatened another student, according to police.
Jackson Township police officers responded at about 12:30 p.m. on Friday, May 16, to the school along Mudbrook Street Northwest in Massillon, according to a news release.
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Another student reported the gun to the school's resource officer, Superintendent Chris DiLoreto wrote in a Friday afternoon statement.
That officer then confronted the 10-year-old student and confiscated the loaded .45-caliber firearm, police said.
No one was harmed, DiLoreto said.
Investigators then learned the boy had previously threatened another student and the resource officer, according to police.
'All students and staff at Sauder Elementary followed safety protocols and remained safe during this matter,' reads the release. 'This incident remains under investigation.'
The student was arrested on felony counts of inducing panic and illegal conveyance of a deadly weapon and transported to a Stark County juvenile detention center, police said later Friday.
FOX 8 News has decided to withhold his name.
Police are continuing to investigate and there may be more arrests, according to the Friday update.
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DiLoreto in his statement urged parents to have 'age-appropriate' conversations with students on 'the importance of speaking up when something feels unsafe.'
'Thanks to the swift and responsible actions of those involved, all students are safe. This is now a law enforcement matter, and we are working in full coordination as they conduct a thorough investigation,' DiLoreto wrote.
'We know that hearing this news is distressing. We want to reassure you that the safety and well-being of your children is our highest priority. Our district's safety protocols were followed and worked as designed. We appreciate our student seeing something and saying something.'
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