A 15-year-old student shot and seriously injured another student at an Arkansas junior high school Monday morning and he has been detained in a juvenile detention facility, authorities said.
The shooting happened at Watson Chapel Junior High School as students were switching classes at about 10 a.m., Pine Bluff Police Chief Kelvin Sergeant said. The school is in the city of Pine Bluff, about 40 miles (65 kilometers) southeast of Little Rock.
One 15-year-old boy shot another 15-year-old boy, prompting a lockdown. The shooter then ran away but was found in a nearby neighborhood by a tracking dog, Sergeant said.
The wounded boy was airlifted to a Little Rock hospital where he was “in very serious condition,” as of Monday afternoon, Sergeant said.
“We don’t have a definite motive right now as to why the incident occurred,” Sergeant said. “However we do believe this was a targeted incident as opposed to a random incident.”
The suspected shooter was taken to a juvenile detention center and prosecutors have not yet decided whether charges will be filed in juvenile or adult court, officials said. His name was not released because of his age.
Monday was scheduled to be Watson Chapel’s first day back for on-site learning in several weeks after winter weather and water issues closed the facility.
The Associated Press contributed to this article