THIBODAUX, LA — The Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office wants to warn parents and kids about the dangers of replica firearms.

On Thursday, January 23, Sheriff Craig Webre says his deputies responded to a location in Thibodaux where a group of kids was firing Airsoft pistols at another group of kids.

Webre says the guns are nearly identical replicas of real firearms and create dangerous situations for his deputies as well as members of the public who must make split second decisions on whether the guns are real or toys.

In 2017, Webre says a student in Raceland took one of the replica pistols to school as did a student in Thibodaux in 2019.

“It is important that parents and children fully understand the risks involved with using these types of pistols,” Webre says in on online news blog regarding the guns. “We are urging citizens to refrain from using these in public settings and to modify the pistol so that it does not look like an actual firearm.

Webre also says that the replica guns should not be considered toys because the BBs they fire can seriously injure a person’s eye or other sensitive area.

The sheriff’s blog also says that anyone caught striking another person with a BB fired from an Airsoft gun could be subject to criminal charges including aggravated battery with a dangerous weapon.