PITTSBURGH,None — A man accused of entering the Creative and Performing Arts School in downtown Pittsburgh with a gun and injuring a security guard was sentenced to five to 10 years in prison on Wednesday.
Aaron Darrand Mohamed, 23, was charged with aggravated assault and reckless endangerment, among other charges.
The school's security guard, Alfonso Roberts, testified that he has to have surgery on his hand, which was injured during a scuffle with Mohamed.
No one else was injured in the April 14, 2009, incident.
"He was sentenced to almost six to 10 years in prison. There's a ton of probationary period for some of the lesser charges, so he's going to jail for a good while," said Bob Fadzen, Pittsburgh Public Schools police Chief. "Itself sends a strong message. Don't bring a gun into one of our schools."
According to the criminal complaint, Mohamed attempted to enter the school under the pretense that he was obtaining an early dismissal for a student. Roberts said Mohamed had a birth certificate and a bottle of alcohol in a bag he was carrying.
As Roberts was verifying the certificate's legitimacy, Mohamed entered a bathroom, which is where a student spotted him.
The student came out and told Roberts that the man "appeared jumpy and kind of scared me." He said he also saw Mohamed pick up a gun in the restroom.
During a search of the suspect, Roberts said he discovered a silver gun. That's when, according to the complaint, Mohamed fled down the hall toward the Fort Duquesne Boulevard exit door.
Roberts caught up with Mohamed, police said, and the two got into a scuffle and crashed through a glass door, which is when Roberts was injured.
A passer-by helped Roberts subdue the suspect until police arrived and handcuffed him. School officials said the .38-caliber handgun was not loaded.
Mohamed's attorney, Blaine Jones, said the incident was simply a misunderstanding.
"His entire purpose for being there was to help his family," Jones said. "He got a call saying his half-sister had an appointment and needed to get out early and he was just helping out his half-sister."
After a preliminary hearing, Pittsburgh Public Schools police Chief Robert Fadzen praised Roberts, who, unlike a regular officer, had no weapon.
"He did an outstanding job," Fadzen said. "It was in the afternoon, students were everywhere -- in the halls, on the streets.
"When you look at the tape, you will see the actions of the officer," Fadzen said. "He tackled him twice and the guy had a gun. His only concern was protecting those kids, even as they both went through the glass window."
But Jones said the camera footage showed a different picture.
"The entire time, my client was being compliant … following the officer's orders," Jones said. "In fact, the injuries the officer received, he brought on by himself, tackling my client through the door."
"I am not a hero. I was just doing my job," Roberts told Channel 11 News. "I was caught up in the moment, I guess."
"I was shocked. Because Alfonso's always helping us ... almost (took) a bullet for us," said student Kallie Graham.
Nancy Mershon, a school bus driver, said she saw the scuffle.
"I was looking down the hall, and I just saw Alfonso, one of the security guards, talking with this guy, and the guy said, 'Chill out,' and all of the sudden you see the security guard tackle this dude," Mershon told Channel 11 News.
"He gets up, starts running," she said. "The security guard starts chasing him right out the door as fast as he can. That's all I saw. I didn't see what they were scuffling about. After that, we saw that the door was smashed in."
Security at the school was increased for two days after the incident, officials said.
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