An 18-year-old Righetti High School student was arrested on suspicion of having a loaded handgun on campus Wednesday when law enforcement officers contacted him regarding a different crime.

At approximately 11:50 a.m., the school resource deputy from the Santa Barbara County Sheriff’s Office assisted Santa Maria Police Department detectives by contacting the student in connection with an arrest warrant, according to Raquel Zick, sheriff’s public information officer.

The student, Felix Alejandro Antonio-Leon, was taken into custody, leading to the discovery of the loaded handgun, Zick added.

Since Antonio-Leon is an adult, he was transported to the Northern Branch Jail, where he was booked on suspicion of possessing a firearm on school grounds, a felony charge.

Additional charges related to the arrest warrant were expected to be filed in Santa Barbara County Superior Court as part of the Police Department’s ongoing investigation, Zick added. 

“This incident was addressed quickly, and at no time was there a need for protective actions such as a lockdown at the school,” Zick said.

Details about the investigation that led to the arrest warrant weren’t available Wednesday.

This was the second incident involving a firearm found at a school campus in Orcutt in recent weeks.

In late March, a student had an unloaded firearm at Pine Grove School.

The elementary student did not have ammunition for the weapon, which was safely recovered.