Tip about gun ‘frequently’ brought to Belton school led to student arrest: police
Belton police arrested an 18-year-old student Tuesday who they alleged was bringing a gun to classes at the Scott Educational Center.
Cameron Blake Kopfer, of Belton, was charged with one count of unlawful use of a weapon, a felony, in Cass County Circuit Court Wednesday. His bond was set at $10,000, and he was ordered not to go onto any Belton School District property.
School administrators reported to police Tuesday that a student had notified them that Kopfer had shown them a handgun in a backpack while they were in class Monday, according to court documents. Kopfer allegedly told the other student that he brought the gun to school frequently, police said.
The other student said Kopfer had not made any comments threatening to harm or kill other people, but said he had made comments about “robbing people for drugs and money,” authorities said.
Belton police officers stopped Kopfer before he entered the school around 4 p.m. on Tuesday, and when his bag was searched, a school official found a loaded handgun. Kopfer was then arrested.
“The Belton School District and the Belton Police Department place the safety of our students, teachers and school staff as our highest priority,” the police department said in a social media post. “We are grateful for the courage of an individual to report a tip in hopes of preventing a more tragic outcome. This tip directly resulted in keeping a firearm out of a public school.”
Court records do not yet list an attorney for Kopfer.
