Deputies recovered a loaded firearm from a middle school student in Interlachen, the Putnam County Sheriff's Office said on Tuesday.
The student reportedly brought the firearm onto C.H. Price Middle School, 140 County Road 315, deputies said.
The school was notified that the student had a loaded gun via an anonymous tip that came in at around 3 p.m. A Youth Resource Deputy was alerted and with seconds the student was identified as a 12-year-old seventh-grader and was detained, according to the sheriff's office. The loaded gun was retrieved from the student's waistband and was determined to have been stolen from another district, the sheriff's office said.
The incident hit especially close to home for Sheriff Gator DeLoach because he said his son attends the school.
"So you can imagine it made my blood run cold the moment that I got that phone call that there was a loaded handgun that was recovered at my son's school," he said. I am so grateful to the staff, the anonymous tipster who actually had the mental courage to come forward and report this, and most importantly, to Deputy Eads, who was a hero in my opinion."
Deputy Eads is new to the Youth Resource unit.
"Deputy Eads very quickly identified that there was a problem on campus and immediately ran to it," DeLoach said. "Quite frankly, he's a hero tonight in my opinion."
The sheriff's office believes the student had the gun for a few days before bringing it to school. It is unknown why the student brought the firearm.
The student is facing charges of possession of a firearm on a school campus.