Teen With Airsoft Gun Alarms Residents, Prompts Preschool Lockdown

Many Pleasanton residents near the Fairland Drive and Pimlico Drive area were alarmed Wednesday morning when they thought they saw a young man running around the neighborhood holding a rifle and wearing body armor.

After receiving a number of calls from worried residents about the suspicious boy, Pleasanton police responded and ordered nearby Hacienda Preschool to shelter in place.

Officers were able to locate the suspect, but he turned out to be a 16-year-old boy with an airsoft gun.

The airsoft gun resembled an actual rifle. The guns fire plastic pellets using compressed gas or electric and/or spring-driven pistons. Police also said he was wearing a brown utility vest, which is similar in appearance to body armor. The boy was cited for discharging an air gun and released to a parent, according to the Pleasanton Police Department.

Though the boy ended up posing no threat, Pleasanton police took the situation seriously, Lt. Brian Laurence said.

The East County Tactical Team, which happened to be training in Livermore, responded. When the boy was spotted by a Zone 7 water agency employee about a quarter mile east of Santa Rita Road, Pleasanton police established a perimeter for the area.

"Although nobody was injured during this event, the Pleasanton Police Department wants to remind members of the community that discharging air guns is illegal within the city limits," Lt. Laurence said in a press release. "In addition, due to their realistic appearance, incidents such as these can lead to tragic consequences. Fortunately, that did not occur in this instance."