A 12-YEAR-OLD boy spent a day in a police cell after firing plastic pellets at his school.

Police were called on Friday, June 5 after the boy fired plastic pellets from the gun in the school toilets before classes began at Lee Valley High School, in Bullsmoor Lane.

The boy was taken to Edmonton police station, where he spent the day in a police cell. He was given a reprimand, or formal warning, and his details have been referred to the Youth Offending Team.

His mother says he has now been permanently excluded from the school, but Lee Valley High School headteacher Janet Cullen did not confirm this.

She described the incident as "very serious" and said she had "no option" but to refer the matter to the police.

She said: "At this stage the school is conducting an investigation and following its procedures in accordance with its behaviour policy. The school is unable to go into the detail of this case and answer questions until its procedures are completed. This is an extremely serious matter."

The boy's mother, who did not want to be named, has defended her son's actions, claiming he got the gun from one of his friends.

She said: “I don’t think it is serious, but it was dangerous because it was a working gun.”

“Most children have got fake guns and play with them. It's not like he actually fired it at the children, he fired it at the door of the toilets.

"But I think it hasn't been dealt with properly. It is like the police were doing everything to blacklist him. They shouldn't give him a criminal record. He gave his DNA and fingerprints and everything. If it was metal bullets it would have been different."

As punishment, she said she had told her son he "wasn't going out" for an indefinite period.

Safer Schools Sergeant Sharon McHugh said: "The pellets went in the direction of the toilet door near the PE department and didn't cause any damage. However there were several pupils in the corridor that the pellets could have hit.

She added: "All schools are advised by police to report any matters of weapons even if it is an imitation. Officers are faced with great difficulty when it comes to imitation firearms.

"Imitation firearms may be completely harmless to the individual who is in possession of such a weapon, but these items can be near perfect copies and officers therefore have to deal with these situations as if a genuine firearm is involved."