Deputies fired a shot near Mission Hills High School at man holding a “long gun” Thursday prompting a school lockdown, according to the San Diego County Sheriff’s Department.
The deputy missed.
It turns out the man was shooting at gophers.
Felipe Holguin, 21, was shooting gophers outside his house on Felicia Lane in San Marcos, according to Lt. Mike Cea. Neighbors called the Sheriff’s Department at about 8 a.m. after hearing shots being fired.
When deputies arrived, they set up a perimeter and Holguin lowered his rifle, Cea said. He then picked the rifle back up and aimed it towards deputies.
A deputy fired one shot but it missed Holguin and hit a neighboring house, according to Cea. No one was injured.
“In the final analysis the risk was a very low level. But you never want to dismiss any risk when there's a school and students involved. It worked out well. No one was hurt,” said Cea.
Local
The school was told to go into immediate lockdown by deputies at about 8.05 a.m., according to Principal David Cochrane.
“When they tell us, we do. The staff got the kids in the classroom quickly,” said Cochrane.
The high school sent an "all call home" message out to all parents notifying them of the lockdown. It was lifted at 8.30 a.m.
The gunman was never seen on campus and the incident occurred more than 100 yards away from the school, said Cochrane.
The principal says the staff and students did a great job.
“The kids were awesome. They all remained calm. The lockdown worked as you practice it, so it was fine,” said Cochrane.
Holguin was taken into custody. It's not clear if he's facing any charges.
Keep up to date on breaking news: Follow us on Twitter @nbcsandiego, fan us on Facebook, sign up for our breaking news e-mail alerts or text SDBREAKING to 622339 to receive text messages for local breaking news. (For more info, text HELP. To end, text STOP. Message and data rates may apply.)
