ELLIOT BLUNK

ST. CLAIRSVILLE — An 18-year-old man arrested at St. Clairsville High School on Wednesday, accused of loading a firearm on school property, will be back in court on those charges this coming Tuesday.

Elliot Blunk, 18, was arrested Wednesday on charges of inducing panic, carrying a concealed weapon, and convey/possess weapon on school property. Belmont County Western Division Court Judge Eric Costine set a $50,000 bond for Blunk on Thursday. Blunk will appear in front of Costine again on Tuesday at 1:15 p.m.

As St. Clairsville High School students prepared to head home Wednesday, St. Clairsville Police were called at 2 p.m. after school staff allegedly saw Blunk loading a magazine into a firearm at the school’s flagpole, located directly in the center of the school’s campus.

The school’s resource officer, Mike Duplaga, said Blunk is a Louisville, Kentucky, native but moved to Monroe County at some point in his youth, eventually making his way to St. Clairsville.

“He doesn’t have a residence here, he just kind of hangs out in random places, wherever he can lay his head down at,” Duplaga said. “But he’s been staying at a house here in town a couple nights a week for the past couple of months.”

Duplaga added that the St. Clairsville Police Department arrived on the scene only minutes after the 911 call was made by the school’s staff.

“He’s got a girlfriend that goes to the high school. So that’s what he was doing there,” he said.

Duplaga added that the weapon allegedly was taken from Blunk’s waistband, and that he was taken to the city’s police station for questioning, which he was cooperating with at the time. Based on the questioning, he was transported to the Belmont County Jail where he remains on bond.

“This is the second incident that we’ve had at the school this year. The first was the bomb threat earlier in the year. And I’m just happy with the cooperation of our law enforcement who are always there and respond super quickly here in our town,” Duplaga said. “Richland Township Police Department and the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office are always paying attention. And their response time for the bomb threat and for this incident were really, really good.”

He added that not everywhere can have as many police officers show up in such a short amount of time in a potential crisis and that is something the city should be proud of.

Duplaga added that, once the 911 call was made, the school entered lockdown until Blunk was apprehended, which only lasted 12 to 15 minutes from the call until Blunk was taken to the station.