Man on dirt bike with AR-15 shut down South Dade High. He was not a threat, cops say
A man on a dirt bike with an AR-15 sticking out of his book bag put South Dade Senior High School into lockdown Thursday morning, according to Miami-Dade County Public Schools police.
Christian Edinger, 23, was arrested and charged with improperly exhibiting a firearm and interfering with an educational institution, according to his arrest affidavit.
It started while parents were dropping off their children at the high school, 28401 SW 167th Ave in Homestead.
Edinger was stuck in traffic in the westbound lanes of Southwest 288th Street and was on the south side of the school when people began noticing the barrel of a rifle sticking out of his book bag, according to the arrest affidavit.
911 calls about a man with a large gun seen near campus soon began pouring in, sending the high school into a precautionary lockdown while officers searched the area.
That caused “frantic fear in approximately one thousand parents that gathered outside” the school waiting to pick up their children, the affidavit states.
An anonymous tipster directed police to Edinger’s Homestead home, which is about three minutes away from the school. Police say the 23-year-old, who has a concealed weapon permit, “voluntarily” told them he drove by the school with his AR-15 in his book bag because he was leaving his brother’s home, which is on the east side of the high school, the arrest report said. He was then arrested.
His gun was not loaded, according to WSVN.
Police say he was “very apologetic for his actions and understood his actions were criminal.”
The lockdown was lifted at 10 a.m. after an “exhaustive search produced negative results,” said School Superintendent Alberto Carvalho on Twitter. “Students and staff are safe. The school day has resumed as usual.”
This story was originally published February 20, 2020 at 8:44 AM.
