Gloucester HS placed on lockdown due to incident involving construction workers, 2 arrested

GLOUCESTER COUNTY, Va. (WAVY) — An 18-year-old man has been arrested in connection to a lockdown at Gloucester High School Tuesday morning, according to the Gloucester County Sheriff’s Office.

Just after 11 a.m., the School Resource Officer (SRO) initiated the lockdown in response to the report that a weapon was found on school grounds.

School officials later said an incident between two construction workers outside of the school prompted the lockdown. Officials also stated that all staff and students are safe.

The Gloucester County Sheriff’s Office said an investigation led to the discovery of a loaded gun and the arrest of 18-year-old Travis Sentel Evans Jr., of Virginia Beach.

Evans was arrested and charged with carrying a firearm on public school property, brandishing a firearm while on school property, carrying a concealed weapon, remove, alter, destroy a serial number to a firearm, possess marijuana on public school property. He is currently being held without bond.

His father, 44-year-old Travis Sentel Evans Sr. was also taken into custody due to his behavior during his son’s arrest. Travis Sentel Evans Sr. was charged with disorderly conduct and is being held on a $1,000.00 secured bond.

Around 1 p.m., the school division announced that the lockdown had been lifted and stated that more information will be released after the investigation is complete.

Gloucester County Public Schools issued an initial statement to parents, guardians and staff about the lockdown, then provided this update a couple hours later.

To provide some background, the School Resource Officers initiated a lockdown at 11:05 AM today in response to a report of a weapon outside the school building in an exterior area undergoing construction. School division leadership soon learned that two construction workers were involved in an altercation that involved a weapon on school property. The individuals were quickly detained, and any immediate threat was eliminated. The school soon lifted the lockdown and resumed normal operations.
Gloucester County Public Schools has a zero-tolerance policy regarding the possession of weapons on school grounds. Our utmost concern is always the safety of our students and staff.
Division Leadership immediately scheduled a meeting with the general contracting company to review current procedures for vetting construction and subcontractor employees. The Division is also working with the company on additional safety measures to ensure that any incident similar to this will not happen again. Also, division leadership plans to meet with the faculty at Gloucester High School later this afternoon to answer any questions regarding today’s situation.
GCPS certainly understands the strong concerns that parents and guardians may have regarding today’s events, and we remain committed to sharing with you more information as it becomes available. The Division is taking every necessary step to ensure anyone who enters the grounds of any of our schools, outdoors or inside, is vetted to the fullest extent possible to guarantee that our students and staff remain safe and secure.
We are extremely grateful that our staff has been well trained to handle situations like this. Because of the actions of our staff, especially our dedicated School Resource Officers, we were able to prevent this situation from escalating and causing any injuries or harm to our incredible students and staff members.
This case is currently under investigation by the Gloucester County Sheriff’s Office.

Anthony Vladu, Ed.D.
Gloucester County Public Schools Superintendent

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