At least four people have been injured following a shooting at an Arlington, Texas High School.
Arlington Police Assistant Chief Kevin Kolbye said during a news conference that four people were hurt during the shooting this morning at Timberview High School. Police were dispatched to the school at 9:15 local time with reports of a shooting on the second floor of the school.
“Currently we have multiple agencies doing a methodical search as they were in lockdown, and we’re going to try to do an orderly fashion to bring them out of the school to ensure that they are brought to their parents,” said Kolbye.
One of the people injured suffered just minor injuries. The other three were transported to the hospital. Reports say at least two of the victims are in surgery.
Arlington Police Assistant Chief Kolbye said that the shooting “is not a random act of violence.” He said all evidence points towards the suspected shooter being a student who got in a fight before firing the shots.
“This is not somebody attacking our schools. This is a student, we believe right now, preliminary, that it was a student that got into a fight and drew a weapon,” Kolbye noted. He also said he is not sure how the student was able to get the gun inside the school, adding that he was unsure if metal detectors are inside the school or not.
The suspected shooting has been identified as Timothy George Simpkins, an 18-year-old who is currently at large. He is driving a silver, 2018 Dodge Charger with a license plate PFY6260.
“We currently have multiple agencies, including the US Marshals’ task force that is looking for this individual. Again, this is a collaborative effort between state, local and federal agencies to bring this person to justice,” Arlington, Texas, Police Assistant Chief Kevin Kolbye said at a news conference.
Police consider the suspect armed and dangerous and if seen, people should call 911.
Jeff Boshek, special agent in charge for the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ Dallas Field Division, said they will track down the gun used in the incident.
“We’ll figure out where this individual got this gun from. Our agents won’t sleep, working with our partners here, to figure out how he got this weapon in his hand to come in this school and cause this tragedy today. So, I don’t have much information I can give you on the weapon. Obviously, we don’t have that yet. We haven’t been in the school to figure out the caliber of the weapon or anything like that yet, but as soon as we do, we’ll have something to get out to you guys,” Boshek told reporters during a news conference.
Thankfully, school resource officers were already inside the school at the time of the shooting and were able to respond quickly.
Two police officers from the Mansfield Independent School District were in the school and rendered aid immediately after the shooting, Kolbye said.
The injured persons are at least three students and possibly one teacher.
Police are asking any witnesses to the shooting to share video or any information they may have,.
