Teen facing charges after shooting toy gun at students on Fresno school bus: FCSO
FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- The Fresno County Sheriff's Office has detained the student they say fired a toy "gel blaster" gun toward a school bus driver and other children.
The incident happened at Sierra and Warren in Northwest Fresno, near Bullard High.
Deputies say the bus was headed for the school when the student, who was actually suspended on Monday, fired the gel blaster gun toward the driver, hitting the windshield.
"A disturbance broke out on the bus, and that one of the students, a 15-year-old boy, pulled out a gel blaster, toy gun, started firing these Orbeez, or water-filled pellets, throughout the bus," said Fresno County Sheriff's Office spokesperson, Tony Botti.
The pellets hit 13 students, injuring one of them.
However, investigators say the incident could have been more serious.
"If it would've struck the driver and really interrupted him from his route, it could've been very dangerous for the kids on board," said Botti.
When the bus stopped, the 15-year-old student jumped out a window.
"While we were sitting there, dealing with the bus, we learned that the boy had made his way back here to the Bullard High School campus. He actually went into the office and turned himself in," said Botti.
Even though no one was hurt, the student is now facing 13 charges of assault and is being detained at the juvenile justice center.
Deputies learned the student was suspended on Monday for shooting a toy gun while on campus.
It's unknown if anyone was hurt in that incident.
Concerned parents were seen picking up their kids while deputies interviewed students on the bus.
One parent we spoke to didn't want to appear on camera for privacy reasons but says she is frustrated with Fresno Unified.
"There's just been things that were happening to the bus driver that the students were doing and jumping onto the bus. It's just Fresno Unified is getting these buses way too packed. They need to spread these kids out, that's crazy," said a Fresno Unified mother.
Fresno Unified says it is still investigating the incident and how the student got onto the bus.
The district confirmed that it doesn't have technology that scans ID cards to ensure students are allowed to board that bus.
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