Moscow teen school shooter charged with murder, hostage taking

© RIA Novosti.Sergey Gordeev, the 15-year-old who was arrested last week after a shootout and hostage crisis in a Moscow school that left a teacher and a police officer dead has been officialy charged with murder, intent to commit murder, and the taking of hostages, Russian Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin announced Wednesday, rapsinews.com reports.

On February 3, the student made his way into the school with a rifle by threatening a guard who immediately called the police. The teen barged into a classroom where his geography teacher was giving a lesson and fatally wounded him, then held about 20 students hostage, authorities said. The gunman also shot a police officer who arrived on the scene and wounded another, police said.

One of the students told the Life News television network that the attacker was one of the best students in the class and was not involved in any conflicts at school, including with the murdered teacher. However, the Kommersant newspaper said the student was angry at the teacher for preventing him from being awarded a gold medal for academic performance. Investigators report that the suspect fired no less than 11 shots, weilding two carbines legally registered to his father.

In accordance with the Russian Criminal Code, underaged criminals face a maximum sentence of ten years in a juvenile correctional facility.

Following the incident, Russian lawmakers reacted with a barrage of legislation, including proposals to ban violent videogames and scenes of child violence on TV.