11-year-old arrested after bringing knife to Flagler County school, officials say

PALM COAST, Fl. — An 11-year-old student was arrested after deputies said he brought a knife to school and threatened to harm another student with it.

The incident happened at Rymfire Elementary School Tuesday afternoon, according to the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.

Officials believe the boy packed the knife in his bookbag Monday and brought it to school the following day.

Early investigations revealed that a student was upset and told a teacher that the arrestee said he was going to murder him, according to arrest documents. The teacher later said she observed the arrestee throw the knife over a school fence before she had a chance to confront him.

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The boy later told investigators that he didn't plan on harming anyone with the knife.

He faces a felony charge of exhibiting a weapon on school property, according to the Flagler County Sheriff's Office.

The boy was processed at the Sheriff Perry Hall Inmate Detention Center Facility before being released into the custody of his guardians.

Flagler Schools Superintendent James Tager released a statement on the incident:

Providing a safe and secure learning environment is of top priority for our school system and we take these incidents very seriously. Extensive security measures are in place to help us maintain a safe campus. As parents, you can help. Please take this opportunity to speak to your child about the importance of school safety. While peer pressure is great at this age, we want to encourage students to feel comfortable reporting any information they may have that compromises their safety and the safety of others. Working together we can maintain an environment where students are free to focus on learning.

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