A 17-year-old juvenile was apprehended for possession of a firearm at Brookhaven High School and was in the custody of youth court officials Thursday afternoon, said Brookhaven Police Chief Bobby Bell.

According to Bell, school officials at BHS called the Brookhaven Police Department Thursday afternoon in reference to a student with a gun in a book bag.

The .38-caliber handgun wasn’t loaded at the time, and no bullets were found, Bell said.

“Since the incident is being investigated at this point, we will treat this as a student matter and refer to school policy and procedure,” Brookhaven Superintendent of Education Ben Cox commented Friday morning.

BHS Principal David Martin is withholding comment as details remain to be sketched out.

Lincoln County Sheriff Steve Rushing said none of his deputies had transported a juvenile to Natchez or Rankin County since the incident. This is part of protocol when a juvenile is detained, according to Rushing.

Friday morning, Lincoln County youth court officials refused to release any information due to the age of the juvenile.