A boy aged 15 was in a critical condition in hospital last night after being shot in the face on his way to school.
The alleged attacker – believed to be a former friend – is said to have been waiting outside the teen’s home.
The unnamed Year 11 pupil had been returning to school for the first time since lockdown when he was blasted in the jaw, according to witnesses.
The gunman is said to be a fellow pupil at the school. Last night police were quizzing a 15-year-old arrested on suspicion of attempted murder.
The shooting happened at 8.40am in an upmarket area of Kesgrave, near Ipswich, Suffolk. Paramedics spent 90 minutes battling to help the boy before he was airlifted to Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge.
A teenager (pictured) has been arrested by police after a 15-year-old boy was shot on his way to school in front of terrified pupils near Ipswich today
The suspect – who witnesses say hid in a back garden behind an animal enclosure just moments after the attack – was pictured being hauled into a police car in handcuffs less than six miles from the shooting in Kesgrave. Pictured: Police outside a property close to the scene of the shooting
A witness said the boy was not perturbed by the armed officers who rushed to his car – which he was seen driving moments before – to arrest him. Pictured: Police stopping a convertible car. It is unclear if this car is connected to the shooting
Friends described the victim, a pupil at Kesgrave High School, as a ‘lovely lad’ and a ‘normal kid’ who enjoyed being a Scout and music.
Witnesses claimed the two boys used to be friends but had fallen out.
Two hours after the attack, armed police pounced on the suspected gunman in another part of Kesgrave. Residents described their shock as a dozen firearms officers swooped with dogs.
The boy was said to be found hiding in a convertible car belonging to his father outside a large detached home.
Police were seen stopping a convertible car. It is unclear if this car is connected to the shooting
Witnesses claim the arrested teenager – who witnesses say hid in a back garden behind an animal enclosure just moments after the attack – had been driving his father’s car when stopped by police outside an address five miles from the school. Pictured: Police outside a property in Ipswich
Police this afternoon maintained a visible presence outside the high school (pictured), which is about four miles from Ipswich town centre, with four uniformed officers standing at the main gates
The owner of the property said: ‘I heard this huge commotion. Dogs barking, police shouting and smashing the windows of the convertible. He didn’t want to come out. There were ten to 12 officers with guns. He was totally surrounded. I saw him being detained by police about 11am.
‘He was wearing jogger bottoms and a sweat top. He didn’t say anything. I had seen that car earlier in the morning at about 9am parked outside my house but no one was in it then. I didn’t see the weapon, but police forensics are still searching the car.’
The suspect was hauled into a police car in handcuffs.
Police officers and teachers outside Kesgrave High School, the school attended by a 15-year-old boy who was shot
Suffolk Police confirmed that shortly before 1.00pm a teenage boy, whose age has not been confirmed, was arrested and is currently being questioned. Pictured: Police in Kesgrave
Police at the scene of the incident in Grange Farm, Kesgrave, which is to the east of Ipswich
Police officers conduct a search on Friends Walk, Kesgrave, Suffolk, where a 15-year-old student from Kesgrave High School was shot
Officers were last night probing whether he drove to the scene before making his getaway despite not being old enough to drive.
Another resident said the suspected gunman hid in his back garden, but escaped before armed police arrived.
He said: ‘I got woken up because my dogs were going absolutely ballistic at the back of the house.’ He added that the suspect had a hooded top over his arm concealing whatever he was carrying.
Last night a friend of the victim’s family said: ‘He is completely normal – he does Scouts, has piano lessons and guitar. He’s literally a completely normal kid, straight-edged and genuine. It’s just so random to me. When I heard about it I thought it might be a random drive-by like in America.’
The victim’s parents, who work in the tech industry, and other members of his family were all said to be devastated.
One mother of a pupil at the school wrote on Facebook: ‘My daughter and friends were walking to school and heard what sounded exactly like a gunshot. Then lots of people [were] screaming and a lady saying “Run! Someone has been shot”. I had four terrified children come running back to mine.’
Last night police said they are not looking for anyone else over the attack.
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson told the Commons: ‘Our thoughts are very much with the young person, their family and the whole school community at this very difficult time.’
