HENDRY COUNTY, Fla. — Florida deputies say a 10-year-old boy sold his late father's gun to another boy at school, leading to both of their arrests.
It happened Wednesday morning at Country Oaks Elementary School in LaBelle.
Hendry County deputies and school administrators say they first found ammunition in one 10-year-old boy's backpack. They learned he had purchased a gun from another 10-year-old boy for $300 based on an agreement they made in February, according to the sheriff's office.
The gun the boy was selling had belonged to his late father.
The gun was later found under a shed in the backyard of the boy who purchased it, deputies said.
"When Investigators removed the firearm, they also located a baggie of marijuana weighing approximately 74 grams," the sheriff's office said in a Facebook post.
That boy was arrested and charged with the purchase of a firearm by a minor, unlawful possession of a firearm by a minor, possession of a firearm on school property and possession of marijuana over 20 grams.
The boy who allegedly sold the gun was also arrested and charged with selling a firearm to a minor, unlawful possession of a firearm by a minor, possession of a firearm on school property and grand theft of a firearm. The boy's mother is a deputy with the Hendry County Sheriff's Office; she has been placed on administrative leave pending investigation.
Both 10-year-old boys are in the custody of the Department of Juvenile Justice.
The school was placed on a brief lockdown while investigators were working to resolve the situation.
“This is an isolated incident and I want to assure everyone that at no time were the students, staff and school administration in danger,” Sheriff Steve Whidden said.
