GAINESVILLE, Fla. – An 11-year-old boy was taken into custody Saturday after two juveniles told deputies they had been threatened with a firearm by another young person.
In the early hours of Saturday, August 29, 2026, Deputy B. Dolan responded to Verdant Cove, located in the 1100 block of SE 41st Drive, after authorities received a report of an armed disturbance.
According to investigators, Deputy Dolan spoke with two juvenile victims at the scene. They said they were inside a bedroom when they spotted the suspect, who is also a juvenile and known to them, outside on the playground. An argument reportedly started after the 11-year-old saw the victims. Deputies said the boy then took a black semi-automatic handgun from another person on the playground, approached the bedroom window, tapped on the glass with the weapon, and threatened to shoot the victims. The children shouted that someone outside had a gun, prompting a guardian to step outside and check on the disturbance. The guardian reported seeing the suspect holding the firearm and called law enforcement. Deputies said the suspect and the person from whom he had taken the gun left the area before officers arrived.
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Deputies later located the 11-year-old at his home and confirmed he was the juvenile accused of threatening the victims with the gun.
The boy was arrested on a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon without intent to kill and was transported to the Juvenile Detention Center.