MIAMI-DADE COUNTY, Fla. – A Miami-Dade school custodian was arrested Wednesday after police say he attacked a fellow employee at Van E. Blanton Elementary and was later found carrying a loaded handgun in his backpack.
Recommended Videos
The incident occurred around 9:20 a.m. at the school, located at 10327 NW 11th Ave., in the county’s Pinewood neighborhood, according to an arrest report from the Miami-Dade Schools Police Department.
Police say Delvin James Sheffield, 46, of northwest Miami-Dade, followed the victim and another school employee down a stairwell before intentionally pushing the victim down the stairs and into a wall.
Authorities said surveillance video captured the attack, showing Sheffield grabbing the victim by the shirt and shoulders and shoving him forcefully against a stairwell door.
The victim told investigators he had an argument with Sheffield about two weeks earlier but had not had any problems with him since.
M-DSPD officials said they took Sheffield into custody at the school.
After being read his Miranda rights, they said he reportedly gave a full confession.
A search of his backpack, which he was wearing at the time of arrest, revealed a loaded .45-caliber FNACP semi-automatic handgun, with 13 rounds in the magazine and one chambered, according to investigators.
Jail records show Sheffield is facing charges of battery on a specified school employee or official, illegal possession of a firearm on school property and violation of a concealed weapon and firearm license.
Sheffield, who was listed as an employee on the school’s website as of Friday morning was no longer listed as an inmate on the Miami-Dade jail website after posting a $5,500 bond.
Read Miami-Dade County Public Schools’ statement following his arrest:
“Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS) is aware of the arrest of an employee from Van Blanton Elementary School by the Miami-Dade Schools Police Department. The District is committed to upholding all employees to the highest standard of integrity and respect and will not tolerate the type of conduct for which he was arrested. The District has initiated employment termination proceedings and will ensure the individual is precluded from seeking future employment with the District."
