RUPERT— A male student from Minico High School was arrested Thursday after he brought a handgun to school in his backpack, prompting a lockdown for more than an hour and fueling social media speculation.

The juvenile, arrested off-campus, was in juvenile detention Friday and waiting to speak with a judge, Minidoka County Sheriff Dave Pinther said.

"No threat was made by the student and he never pulled the gun out," Pinther said. "He just told another student he had it in his backpack."

The student sent a 911 text reporting the incident and the sheriff 's office responded to the school.

"Within three to four minutes of leaving the sheriff 's office, we were entering the school," said Pinther, adding that he was also "proud of the school administration. They did their job."

As per protocol, the school was immediately locked down and deputies began searching classrooms for the suspect.

"He had left the school with the backpack and actually got with his mom and his mom called me," Pinther said.

The school remained on lockdown until the backpack was found north and east of the school, the sheriff said.

"It bothers me that we live in a time where this kind of thing happens," Minidoka County School District Superintendent James Ramsey said. "We spend a lot of professional development time practicing safety scenarios for kids and I guess it's just part of the process now. I really commend law enforcement for their professional response. We were blessed with the outcome."

The lockdown generated inaccurate postings on social media, Pinther said, including reports of an active shooter and multiple threats.

"It's human nature that if they don't have the story," he said, "they will make one up."

The Cassia County Sheriff 's Office, Heyburn Police Department and Idaho State Police also responded to the scene.

Due to the school district's four-day class schedule, no students were in classes on Friday.