LAPLACE — A 12-year-old was arrested Tuesday after the sixth-grader brought an unloaded handgun to LaPlace Elementary School.

St. John the Baptist Parish deputies said they arrested the student after a teacher found the boy with the gun inside his pants' waistband.

The student gave the teacher the gun when questioned about it, deputies added.

"We appreciate the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff's Office for promptly addressing... the recent school incident," St. John the Baptist Parish School Board Superintendent Dr. Cleo Perry Jr. said in a statement Wednesday.