BRAINTREE — A tense morning at Braintree High School erupted into a full-blown police response Tuesday after a student was spotted with what looked like a handgun, triggering a shelter-in-place and a rapid law-enforcement sweep.

According to Braintree Police, a witness approached the School Resource Officer shortly after 9 a.m. claiming he had just seen another student with a gun. The SRO immediately alerted supervisors and school administrators, and the school shifted into lockdown procedures as officers moved to locate the student.

Police and school staff quickly isolated the teen and detained him around 9:10 a.m. A search of his coat turned up what officers described as a “realistic-looking airsoft pistol,” nearly indistinguishable from a real firearm at a distance. The student was taken into custody without incident.

Police say the student has been charged with carrying a dangerous weapon on school grounds, minor in possession of a BB gun or soft-air gun, resisting arrest, and assault with a dangerous weapon. His identity is being withheld due to age, and school officials say administrative consequences are pending.

The department released a photograph of the airsoft pistol to illustrate why the situation escalated so quickly. The replica closely resembles an actual handgun, reflecting a broader trend of hyper-realistic airsoft weapons repeatedly triggering school lockdowns across Massachusetts.

In a statement, Braintree Police called the incident a reminder of the importance of strong school safety protocols and close communication between staff and law enforcement.

For families refreshing their screens as sirens closed in, the fear was real — the kind of stomach-dropping dread parents now live with every time a call from school comes in at the wrong hour.