A student at a charter school north of downtown is behind bars and charged with a felony after investigators said they discovered he hid a gun near a campus that is part of the Texans Can Academies school network.
On Thursday, a gun was found near the Houston Can Academies school on Hardy Road, moments after officials say the teenager put it there.
Nearby surveillance camera footage KPRC 2 obtained shows someone crouching down in front of the piece of broken concrete.
“Seeing that, it just breaks my heart,” said Chris Pollard who says he used to attend the school two years ago. “I don’t even know what to say about it,”
A source close to the investigation said an administrator was tipped off about a student who had been stashing a gun near campus. When they turned a camera on the school building toward the location, it allegedly captured the student putting a pistol under a piece of broken concrete.
“Disappointed in the community … the younger generation follows what they grew up around so if we want that to change, we got to change ourselves,” Pollard said.
The student who we’re not naming because he is 17 was arrested and charged with a felony for having a prohibited weapon in a weapon-free school zone.
“A gun is never the answer,” Pollard said.
“This school I’m not going to lie to you. It changes people. I used to go to Jeff Davis, ever since I came here, I went down the wrong path,” he added.
It’s unclear why the student allegedly felt the need to bring a gun to school, but Pollard is encouraging others not to.
“There’re security guards in here. There’re people he can talk to about that,” he said.
Pollard says he’s now found God.
“I used to live that life, like I said I just hope that he finds a better way and it all works out for him… Always, always a way to redeem yourself,” he said.
We tried to get in contact with the school principal and superintendent about the incident but have not heard back.
Court documents show bail has been set at $10,000. There is another court hearing scheduled for Monday.
