A Northern Virginia art teacher was charged with illegally possessing a firearm on school property after a loaded gun was found in a middle school parking lot early Monday, prompting the closure of surrounding schools.
Manassas Park Police Chief Mario Lugo told The Washington Sun in a statement that authorities arrested Veronica Gooch-Ray, an art teacher at Manassas Park High School, after a loaded firearm was found in the parking lot of Manassas Park Middle School, located across the street.
A school transportation employee found the gun between two school division vans during a morning safety check around 6:30 a.m., school officials said in a social media post. Following its discovery, Manassas Park City Schools closed all four of its schools “out of an abundance of caution” to give police time to investigate.
Lugo said the investigation revealed no threat to the schools or community.
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Manassas Park City Schools said in an update that the firearm belonged to a staff member and there was no credible threat to the school. The staff member was “placed on leave per applicable school policies,” according to the post.
Manassas Park City Schools did not respond to a request for comment.
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