Authorities in Douglas County, Colorado, on Friday arrested a man suspected of shooting a student at a high school near Denver.
About noon on Friday, first responders found a male student suffering from a gunshot wound inside Arapahoe High School, which has about 2,500 students. The shooter, described as a male white student wearing black clothing, was allegedly in a school hallway when the victim intervened.
The shooting triggered a “code red” warning at the school, which sends students to the infirmary and makes faculty and staff members involved take a brief break from work. In a statement Friday evening, the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office said the students had entered a school bathroom and were using a restroom when the assailant approached. The sheriff’s office said the victim and alleged shooter were friends, although it was not clear if the school was on lockdown at the time. The statement also said the male victim had in part provoked the assailant by confronting him after he had been “spat upon by another student.” The motive for the shooting has not been confirmed, and the sheriff’s office is investigating whether the shooting was racially motivated. A cellphone video widely shared on social media showed a male with blood visible on his chest as the student was led away from school grounds.