Montgomery County

Teen Accused of Taking Loaded Stolen Gun to Paint Branch High School

Police say he is not a student at the school

A 17-year-old boy took a loaded gun to a Maryland high school he doesn't attend, Montgomery County police said.

Late Tuesday morning, a security officer at Paint Branch High School in Burtonsville saw Elijah Nyamekye near a second-floor bathroom and didn't recognize him as a student.

When he confronted the teen, Nyamekye gave him a fake name, then ran from the school, according to a charging document.

The security officer and a school resource officer found the teen walking on Briggs Chaney Road. He tried to run again, but the officers arrested him, the charging document said.

They searched his black shoulder bag and found a .38 revolver with five bullets inside, authorities said. The handgun was reported as stolen from Pennsylvania, the charging document says.

Security officers also confirmed Nyamekye does not attend Paint Branch High School.

Nyamekye is charged as an adult with possession of a handgun, possession of a firearm by a person under 21, possession of a stolen handgun, trespassing on school property and disrupting school activities.

The teen's aunt told News4 he's been trying to enroll at Paint Branch since he and his mother moved to Silver Spring from Hagerstown.

His aunt says she has been following news reports trying to learn more about what happened. She said she has no idea why he might have taken a loaded gun to the school.

Some parents of students are upset a stranger with a gun got into the school.

"Someone can trespass and it's OK? Why don't you have things in place already?" said parent Mandrel Navarro.

Last week a 16-year-old Paint Branch student was charged with possession of a knife and six rounds of ammunition.

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