Police said a suspected gunman seen outside a University of Massachusetts Lowell dormitory on Wednesday, prompting an intensive search and sending the university into lockdown, was a boy carrying an airsoft replica gun.
Police did not release the boy’s name because he is a juvenile. Police did not say whether he had been arrested or would face charges.
More than 100 heavily armed law enforcement officers scoured the grounds after a person carrying what appeared to be a long gun was seen near South Campus around 2:30 p.m., officials said.
Classes were canceled, and a lockdown lasted until around 5:30 p.m., when authorities ended the search without finding the individual, officials said.
Police did not say how they identified the juvenile. They released a photo of the non-lethal airs