2 custodians bring rifle to school, then post pic on WhatsApp
BOCA RATON FL Dec 13 2020— Two school custodians have been arrested after police report that the two brought a rifle onto the J.C. Mitchell Elementary campus after school hours Wednesday and posed with the weapon in photographs later posted on social media.
Alerted to a photo that appeared on WhatsApp, school police reported that the man in the snap wearing a polo shirt with the Palm Beach County School District logo and a Smith & Wesson slung over his shoulder was easy enough to track down. They identified him as 58-year-old Hoover Mora, according to his arrest report.
Mora later confirmed to police that he was the man in the photo taken on the Boca Raton campus but said the rifle belonged to his colleague, Domingo Urena Reinoso, 52, according to Mora’s arrest report.
Urena Reinosa told investigators that he clocked out of work at 6 p.m. Wednesday and then fetched his AR-15 rifle and returned to campus to show his fellow custodians.
He said that Mora, who works the night shift according to the report, asked to be photographed with the weapon. Police say he posed cradling the butt of the black rifle with his right arm; a ladder and part of the school building can be seen in the background.
Urena Reinosa emphasized in his interview that “he specifically waited for no students to be on campus” and that he didn’t know it was wrong – in fact, illegal, to have it on campus, the report said.
“He only intended to show the other custodians and then bring it back home,” according to the report.
Both men, who live in Boca Raton, were arrested Thursday evening and face charges of possessing a firearm on school property.
On Friday morning, J.C. Mitchell’s principal, Joan Pierre-Jerome, alerted parents to the incident in a recorded callout.
“School Police received a tip that an employee brought a weapon onto our school grounds. School Police immediately launched an investigation. That employee, and another, who was photographed posing with the weapon, were both arrested late last night for possession of a firearm on school property.
“Neither children nor staff were threatened. It appears the employee brought the weapon to school to show coworkers.
“The possession of a firearm on school property is a felony. Signage is posted on all District property stating that firearms are strictly forbidden.
“I thank School Police for their swift and thorough investigation of this matter.
“While I cannot discuss specifics of this case, I wanted you to be aware that this occurred.”
pbpost.com
