Deputies arrest man after knife and gun were found in child’s backpack at school

LANCASTER CO., S.C. – A South Carolina man is behind bars after the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office says he put a knife and gun in a child’s backpack.

Deputies say 29-year-old Alexander Savarese told them he put the weapons in the bag, which he used to take on a hike, and then forgot about them. After that, the child took the backpack to class at Harrisburg Elementary. That’s when they were found, and police were called.

Savarese faces a felony charge of Unlawful Conduct Toward a Child, which carries a possible ten year prison sentence. He’ll have a bond hearing on Friday.