MANCHESTER, Mo. — A Parkway South High School student is being held on $100,000 bond after a gun was found in a backpack during the investigation of a fight Tuesday afternoon.
Kingston Edwards, 18, was charged with unlawful use of a weapon – carrying a loaded weapon into a school and unlawful possession of an illegal weapon in connection with the Tuesday incident.
According to a letter to parents from Principal Angie Pappas-Muyco, two students got into a fight during dismissal at the school on Tuesday. Administrators broke up the fight and started investigating alongside the Manchester Police Department, but one of the students left the area.
The letter said police "pursued and apprehended" the other student, who police later identified as Edwards.
Police said Edwards dropped his backpack during the fight and a friend picked it up for him, but later left it on a school bus. When police found the bag, they discovered a handgun, which they said was illegally modified into a fully automatic weapon.
“Very disturbing to me because I’m just now finding out about it. Oh, my goodness,” said Gary Cooper, a Parkway South parent.
Cooper’s daughter is a junior at the West St Louis County school.
“Yes, I think that student should be held and not be back at Parkway South or any other school,” said Cooper.
“As a parent, it scares me. Also, as a teacher it scares me,” said Charity Tovrea a Valley Park parent who lives in the area.
“I am immensely relived that nobody was hurt, but very concerned that that’s even entering our school systems at all. Children shouldn’t have to worry about that. Teachers shouldn’t have to worry about that,” added Tovrea.
A school district spokesperson tells 5 On Your Side Tuesday’s incident was the first gun-related incident at Parkway South this school year.
We’re also told Kingston Edwards, a senior, will not participate in Parkway South’s graduation ceremony next Friday as a result of the serious charges he’s now facing.
Edward's bond was set at $100,000. He is being held at the St. Louis County jail.
The full letter to parents is as follows:
Dear PSH Community,
In the interest of safety, I would like to share information about a situation that happened at school today. At dismissal, two students were involved in an altercation. Administrators immediately responded and separated the students. No one was injured. Administrators began an investigation in cooperation with Manchester police. One of the students cooperated. Police pursued and apprehended the other student. They later discovered a gun in the student’s backpack. Based on our investigation, we do not believe the gun was displayed at school.
Possession of a weapon at school is a serious violation of the Missouri Safe Schools Act and the student will be excluded from school pending the outcome of the investigation. We will continue to work with law enforcement until this matter is addressed with finality.
Privacy laws prevent me from discussing the details of an individual student’s discipline matter. However, I can tell you that under Parkway’s discipline policy, any student involved in a gun violation of the Safe Schools Act receives discipline ranging from a lengthy superintendent’s level suspension up to expulsion.
The safety and well-being of our students and staff are always our highest priority and will remain a central focus of our actions and communications with all of you. I am grateful for the swift action of Parkway South administrators and Manchester police to keep students and staff safe today.
We will have additional security on campus tomorrow and will be working with our student services team to ensure continued safety of our school. We will continue working with Manchester police until the investigation of this incident is complete.
As always, please feel free to contact me with any questions you may have.
Sincerely,
Angie Pappas-Muyco
Principal