Two students opened fire Tuesday inside a Colorado charter school near Columbine High School, killing one classmate and injuring eight others before being taken into custody, authorities said.

Iran Press/America: Administrators at STEM School, a K-12 charter in the Denver suburb of Highlands Ranch, reported hearing gunshots fired at 1:53 p.m. Deputies from the Douglas County Sheriff's Office arrived on the scene two minutes later and engaged two suspects.

Sheriff Tony Spurlock said the suspects, one adult man and one juvenile boy, were taken into custody. Both are students at the school, and officials do not believe there were any additional suspects, CNN reported.

"We know that two individuals walked into the STEM School, got deep inside the school, and engaged students in two separate locations," Spurlock told reporters. "There were a number of students that were shot and injured."

Eight victims, aged 15 and older, were being treated in local hospitals. No employees or teachers were injured in the shooting, Spurlock said.

The sheriff's office said Tuesday night that a ninth victim, an 18-year-old male student who was not immediately identified, had died. A sheriff's spokesperson said the deceased was pronounced dead at the school.

The FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives in Denver were assisting in the investigation.

The White House said US President Donald Trump has been briefed on the shooting and is monitoring the situation.

The school was placed on lockdown for several hours, according to the Douglas County School District. All other Highlands Ranch schools were placed on lockout.

More than 1,800 students in elementary, middle, and high school attend STEM School, according to its website.

The school is located less than 8 miles away from Columbine high school, where 13 people were killed by two students on April 20, 1999. The shooting was, at the time, the deadliest in the nation's history. 101/211/202

 

 

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