14-year-old holds teacher, students hostage at school

West Virginia State Police say a 14-year-old boy held several students and a teacher hostage in a high school classroom before he let them go and eventually was taken into custody.

Authorities said the boy, armed with a handgun, held the students and teacher hostage Tuesday afternoon inside Philip Barbour High School in Philippi, before surrendering after negotiations with police. After further negotiations, the suspect surrendered to police at 3:30 p.m. and was taken to a local hospital for evaluation.

Students who were barred from entering the classroom then alerted another teacher who alerted school officials before authorities were called, Woofter said. Authorities are continuing to investigate the suspect’s motive.

Earlier, the Barbour County Sheriff’s Office said only that police and emergency medical services were at the scene of Phillip Barbour High School.

“Omg I hear running on the 2nd floor…im freaking out”, one claimed student, @_mj_morris, tweeted amid a lockdown that led to students being evacuated to a football field. Poling said that because the case involves a juvenile, the court process would be closed.

A West Virginia State Police Officer speaks with parents of children from Philip Barbour High School in Philippi, Tuesday, August 25, 2015, after a “hostage-like” situation occurred in the cafeteria of the school. Police have not identified the student. Saltis said “a lot” was going through his mind in the meantime. “No students are in danger and the suspect has been isolated”. Students were evacuated and no injuries were reported.

“In such a trying time, I was just amazed at our parents and how everybody responded to the situation”, Woofter said.

Investigators say the incident began around 2 p.m. Tuesday.