Boys with replica firearms prompt alert at El Dorado Hills school

Students at Marina Village Middle School in El Dorado Hills were directed to shelter in place for a short time Wednesday morning after two boys were spotted nearby pointing what proved to be replica handguns at each other.

A resident observed the boys and notified the El Dorado County Sheriff’s Office about 8:48 a.m. Deputies responded to the area, and were told that the boys were last seen on foot, but they were not immediately found.

Because of the proximity to Marina Village Middle School, deputies notified the district superintendent and school principal. As a precaution, the school was placed on "shelter in place" status about 9:12 a.m., according to a Sheriff’s Office news release.

Deputies found the boys about 9:50 a.m. and saw them pointing a handgun at each other. Deputies determined that the boys were performing martial arts gun safety and takeaway techniques with full-size replica airsoft guns, the news release said.

"The subjects were counseled for using poor judgment conducting such realistic training in the public’s view with no regard for public awareness,” the news release said.

The "shelter in place" status at the school was lifted about 9:56 a.m., the news release said.

This story was originally published April 25, 2018 at 2:55 PM.