Armed man threatens students at high school band camp

Students from the Peoria High School band were threatened by a man wielding a handgun on Wednesday, the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office said.

The band, currently at a band camp at the Emmanuel Pines Camp in Prescott, was practicing in a field when the suspect approached them.

The man, apparently agitated over the noise, told band members that making noise in the morning and afternoon is fine, but is not permissible at night. He then looked at the band director and asked, “Do we have an understanding?”

During the 45-second incident, the man pointed the gun at several band members, including the director.

The 52-member band was escorted from the field and kept in a lockdown while deputies searched the area.

Police believe the suspect lives near the camp, located in the 3000 block of Spence Springs Road.

The suspect is described as being a white male in his 50s, standing about 6 feet tall. He has shorter gray hair and was wearing grey basketball shorts with a stripe on the side and a red or salmon-colored polo shirt.

The suspect supposedly had an accent, possibly British or New York. One student said the man’s speech was slurred.

The band left the camp Thursday morning.

Anyone with information about the suspect is asked to contact YCSO at (928) 771-3260 or Silent Witness at (800) 932-3232.

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