At approximately 1:00 Monday afternoon, Isla Vista Elementary School went into lockdown due to reports of a man carrying a gun on campus.

Students and staff locked themselves in their classrooms while officers of the I.V. Foot Patrol and UC Police Dept. searched the campus. Deputies found the suspect – a minor who was identified by his dark gloves – within 10 minutes of their arrival. It is Nexus policy not to disclose the identities of suspects under the age of 18.

IVFP Lt. Tom McKinny said the suspect was in possession of a portable CD player, not a gun.

“The only report of the gun we had was from a first-grader who told a teacher that this man had a gun,” McKinny said. “What we surmise is that the student saw the Walkman and thought it was a gun.”

Deputies searched the campus but did not find any weapons. The suspect denied any wrongdoing and told officers that he was on campus to pick up his cousin from the school. He was released without incident.

“The important thing here is that the school went into lockdown effectively and efficiently, which allowed us to complete our work quickly,” McKinny said.