DENVER (KDVR) — The gun East High shooting suspect Austin Lyle used to shoot himself with was a ghost gun with no serial numbers, sources told FOX31.
The 17-year-old’s body was found near a car he had driven to Bailey, where Park County Sheriff’s deputies recovered the teenager and his gun nearby.
It’s not known if the gun Lyle used against himself is the same gun used to shoot two high school administrators at East High School Wednesday morning.
Denver police told the Problem Solvers the gun recovered in Bailey will undergo forensic testing to confirm if it’s the same gun used in the double shooting at the school.
It’s not the first time Lyle possessed a ghost gun.
Law enforcement sources told the Problem Solvers, Lyle was put on an 18-month diversion program in April of 2022 after he was arrested in November of 2021 for possessing a ghost rifle, a silencer and a large capacity magazine.
Sources told FOX31 Aurora police responded to his house after classmates at Overland High School reported he had posted pictures of a weapon on social media.
The Cherry Creek School District confirmed on Wednesday that Lyle was previously expelled for violating district policy but did not go into detail about the board policy violation.
In November of 2022, law enforcement sources told the Problem Solvers Lyle was sentenced to 12 months probation and his diversion revoked.
It’s not known what Lyle did to get his diversion revoked but Tom Raynes, the executive director of the Colorado District Attorneys Council, said diversion usually allows a juvenile to get help without a conviction on his or her record.
“And if they successfully complete it, the case will be dismissed and expunged,” Raynes said.
Raynes added diversion is an effort to help teens turn their lives around early in the legal system and like probation, it offers intervention services.
“In either route, whether it’s probation or diversion, given the circumstances, a juvenile could be put into therapy or other types of mental health treatment, getting the services he or she needs,” Raynes said.
Probation is a legal step beyond diversion and comes with a criminal record. Lyle was on probation at the time police said he shot two administrators at Denver East High School.
Now detectives will investigate how Lyle obtained his ghost gun, if he made it himself with an at-home kit or 3D printer or if he possibly bought it from someone.