Name: Orbeez Challenge: 4 teens facing charges after firing gel pellet gun at students, faculty
Uploaded: 2022-03-18T23:36:40-04:00
Description: Authorities in Pennsylvania say a new social media challenge that involves a gel pellet gun lead to a police response at a school and resulted in four teens being arrested.

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Orbeez Challenge: 4 teens facing charges after firing gel pellet gun at students, faculty

Authorities in Pennsylvania say a new social media challenge that involves a gel pellet gun lead to a police response at a school and resulted in four teens being arrested.

RADNOR, Pa. - Authorities in Pennsylvania say four teens are facing charges after they fired a gel pellet gun at a group of students outside a Delaware County middle school.

In a letter to families, the Radnor Township School District said 25 students were working outside Radnor Middle School last week when a car pulled up and fired a gel pellets towards the school.

Three students and a faculty member were hit, but did not require medical treatment.

Officers from the Radnor Township Police Department later arrested four teens who they say were in a car capture on surveillance video that fired the gel gun.

Police say the attack was part of the "Orbeez Challenge," a new TikTok challenge that encourages users to sneak attack unsuspecting people with a gel pellet gun.

"And that they have seen this on a TikTok type of source where it was a challenge and others go video yourself doing that or have some fun with that very unfortunately that was a very bad decision," Radnor Police Superintendent Christopher Flanagan said.

According to officials, the teens arrested in the attack have been charged with possessing instruments of a crime, disorderly conduct, harassment and recklessly endangerment.

Police in cities throughout the U.S. have seen a rise in shootings involving the water pellets.

Officers in Arizona said they have answered multiple calls of people shot with water beads.

MORE: Peachtree City teens arrested for dangerous 'Orbeez challenge'

"There is an indication that this incident could be related to a national social media challenge where the Orbeez water pellets are shot in a "drive-by" method," police said in a statement.

Sandy Springs police reported a similar pellet gun shooting in February, though police did not confirm if the teens arrested were firing Orbeez pellets or if they were participating in the "challenge." A victim said, since he posted about what happened to him on social media, he has heard from a dozen other people who have had the same experience.

"Anybody could confuse what happened with somebody shooting at children at a school, and we know how serious that is so there is no room for that decision at all at any point in time," Flanagan said.