JACKSONVILLE, Florida (AFP) ― A gunman shot and killed a Florida high school principal Tuesday, before turning the weapon on himself in an apparent murder-suicide, officials and sources said.
The Episcopal High School in Jacksonville said it was “deeply saddened” that head of school Dale Regan had been killed on Tuesday afternoon.
“Our deepest sympathies are with her family and we ask for your support and prayers at this time,” the school said in a statement.
Sources at the school said the shooter was a disgruntled Spanish teacher who had fired successive shots from an assault rifle, which had been smuggled onto campus hidden in a guitar case. Police would not immediately confirm the identity of the shooter.
None of the school’s 900 students at the school were harmed. “All students and faculty are safe and our campus is secure,” the school said, adding “the entire school mourns the loss of our friend and leader.”
An unidentified caller alerted police just after 1:00 p.m., saying shots had been fired at the school, Jacksonville Sheriff Office spokesperson Melissa Bujeda said.
Police arrived to find the unidentified former teacher and Regan dead. The sheriff’s office alerted parents “to respond to the normal pick up location.” A subsequent email said “the situation is under control.”
The private fee-paying school, where tuition costs around $17,000 to $18,000 a year, said it would remain closed through the already scheduled spring break until March 19.
