A 17-year-old boy who brought an unloaded gun to Mojave High School on Monday was arrested Tuesday afternoon, authorities said.
The North Las Vegas school along with four other Clark County schools were locked down for hours Monday morning while police searched for the teen.
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He was in the school's courtyard about 6:50 a.m. Monday when some students recognized the boy as a former student.
When two school police officers approached to question the teen why he was on Mojave's campus, on Goldfield Street between Ann and Lone Mountain roads, he sprinted away from the officers and threw away the pistol behind a church across the street and west of the school.
The teen was caught about 1 p.m. Tuesday after Las Vegas police received a tip that he was hanging around the 3500 block of Clear Lake Court, near Pecos Road and Alexander Avenue, said Lt. Ken Young of the Clark County School District Police.
The teen, whose name was withheld because he is a juvenile, was charged with possession of a dangerous weapon, loitering around a school with a weapon, and possession of a firearm with an altered serial number, authorities said.
He was booked into the Clark County Juvenile Detention Center, authorities said.
Since the start of school Aug. 30, eight handguns have been confiscated by district police, they said.
During the past two school years, district police have confiscated on average 2.5 handguns per month from schools, they said.
