The Juvenile Affairs Division of the Bayamón Criminal Investigation (CIC), the Bayamón Prosecutor’s Office and the Attorney for Minors’ Affairs are examining the possible filing of charges or misdemeanors in the case of the 13-year-old boy who posed for photos with a rifle assault on the Snapchat social network, a firearm that was later seized by agents from the Bayamón Sur Precinct.
The Police intervened when they were alerted yesterday, Tuesday, by the school principal, who received copies of the photos. After identifying the minor and arriving at her residence, her mother agreed to a search of the residence located in Bayamón and for the agents to interview the child.
During the course of the interview, the minor admitted to being in the photos and revealed the location of the .223-caliber assault rifle. The Police seized the rifle, whose serial number was mutilated, along with three magazines and 91 ammunition, enough to fill the three magazines to their maximum capacity of 30 bullets each, plus one ammunition in the barrel.
Sergeant Miguel Feliciano, from the Bayamón Sur Precinct and the supervising agent at the scene, told the press that there is no evidence that the minor took the rifle to school and that, at the moment, the investigation does not show that any member of the family has a license to own and/or carry firearms.
“All the evidence was transferred to the San Juan Prosecutor’s Office, where the districts of Bayamón and Carolina consult these types of cases. The two prosecutors, the one that has to do with adults and the one with minors, are evaluating the best procedure. The way in which this minor came into possession of an assault rifle is an aspect that is still under investigation and I cannot comment, but we do not rule out the possibility that the rifle was owned by another member of the family nucleus,” Sergeant Feliciano explained via telephone.
Article 6.09 of the Guns Law classifies as a serious crime the possession, carrying or illegal use of long weapons and, if a person is found guilty of said crime, it carries a fixed prison sentence of 24 years that can increase to 36 years. if there are aggravating circumstances, or be reduced to 18 years due to extenuating circumstances.
In addition, article 6.12 also makes the removal or mutilation of the serial number of a firearm a serious crime, with a fixed sentence of 15 years if the person is found guilty. Mitigating circumstances could reduce the sentence to six years, or increase it to 24 years if there are aggravating circumstances.
“There is a member of the family, who lives in the residence, under investigation as to the source of the firearm. The fixed sentences are the ones that are applied in adult cases, but the cases in which minors are involved are handled in a different way and what they submit are misdemeanors. The investigation continues, but there is the possibility of filing charges against an adult and misdemeanors against a minor, if so determined by the Prosecutor’s Office and the Attorney General. At this time the prosecutors are consulting.
“From the evidence and interviews conducted to date, there is no information that the minor brought that firearm to school,” Feliciano stressed.
For her part, the secretary of the Department of the Family, Carmen Ana González Magaz, indicated, through written statements, that the agency, at the moment, has not received a referral from the Police to intervene in the case. Consequently, the minor remains in the custody of his parents.
“The law and order authorities, as well as school authorities, are dealing with a case in which a 13-year-old minor was in possession of a long weapon in his home in Bayamón. The Family Department has not received a referral from the Police on this case. However, given such a finding, it is necessary to encourage open communication between parents and children, developing effective communication channels in the family, at school and other members of the community. Co-responsibility is essential to establish solid foundations to respond in times of challenges”, highlighted González Magaz in the letter.
“It is imperative to remain vigilant to messages on the networks and any entity outside the circle of friends of minors. It is vital that in these times where communication through electronic means can bring strangers closer to interacting with a minor, that fathers, mothers, teachers and caregivers have the tools to deal with these risks effectively, “exhorted the official. .
The investigation is in charge of agents William Vega Camargo and Margarita Santiago.
