A Weyers Cave man is among three people in custody on firearms charges in a scary incident at Riverheads High School earlier this week.
Hunter Bryce Garcia is being held without bond at Middle River Regional Jail, and two juveniles connected to the incident are being held at the Shenandoah Valley Juvenile Center, according to a report issued on Friday by the Augusta County Sheriff’s Office.
ACSO reported today that it took a report of two stolen firearms from the Waynesboro area at 3:30 p.m. on Tuesday, and that evening, a school resource officer working a sporting event at Riverheads High School was alerted that there were students at the event with firearms.
During the initial investigation conducted by school administrators and the ACSO, another student went out to the vehicle where the firearms were located, retrieved the firearms, and hid them outside on the school property, according to the report.
Deputies and school administrators spent hours trying to locate the firearms throughout the night before school reopened. After the firearms were recovered, one of the suspects, Garcia was arrested, and the two other juveniles now being detained were later picked up.
More charges could be forthcoming as the investigation is still ongoing at this time. Several students have been identified with information about this incident, the ACSO report noted.
“This was an isolated incident that could have ended very badly. Situations like this should not be occurring at our schools,” Sheriff Donald Smith said. “Commonwealth’s Attorney Tim Martin and I spoke with all students about keeping our schools safe. Our citizens can be assured that threats to our schools will be charged appropriately. Children need to understand that there will be consequences when innocent people’s lives are put in danger.”
If anyone has any information about this incident, contact the Augusta County Sheriff’s Office at 540-245-5333 or Crime Stoppers at 800-322-2017.
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Chris Graham
