A 20-year-old man with a gun who was disarmed and detained by an off-duty officer during a Sacramento Catholic school’s event for students on Wednesday is now facing federal charges. Brian Richard Girardot Jr., 20, is charged with possessing a firearm within a school zone, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant said on Thursday. Federal prosecutors said they found threatening notes at Girardot’s home in connection with the case. The Sacramento Police Department said the off-duty officer who disarmed Girardot was a parent observer at an all-school Mass held by St. Mary Parish at the church located in the 1300 block of 58th Street.According to police, the officer saw a man approaching the church, asking to go inside. He spoke with the man and during their interaction, discovered a loaded handgun on him and removed it, police said. More officers responded to the church and arrested the man on firearm charges. The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California said Girardot is a former student at St. Mary Parish School who walked onto the church property after dropping off a younger relative there. In a letter to parents, St. Mary Parish School said that the all-school Mass for students happened around 9:30 a.m., with church doors locked and parent observers located outside and inside of the church.”Thanks to the vigilance and professionalism of our parent volunteers, our children remained safely inside the church for the duration of Mass and a potential crisis was averted. No students came into contact with the man, and were unaware of the situation happening outside. After Mass the children were escorted back to class,” the letter reads in part.Girardot had more ammunition and a camouflage jacket in his vehicle that was parked near the school, federal prosecutors said.Investigators later conducted a search of his home and found handwritten notes in a stack in his bedroom that contained references to suicide and threats, prosecutors said. Girardot faces a possible prison sentence of five years, if convicted. He’s also being charged in state court. The FBI and Sacramento police are conducting the investigation into the incident. See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel

SACRAMENTO, Calif. —

A 20-year-old man with a gun who was disarmed and detained by an off-duty officer during a Sacramento Catholic school’s event for students on Wednesday is now facing federal charges.

Brian Richard Girardot Jr., 20, is charged with possessing a firearm within a school zone, U.S. Attorney Eric Grant said on Thursday. Federal prosecutors said they found threatening notes at Girardot’s home in connection with the case.

The Sacramento Police Department said the off-duty officer who disarmed Girardot was a parent observer at an all-school Mass held by St. Mary Parish at the church located in the 1300 block of 58th Street.

According to police, the officer saw a man approaching the church, asking to go inside. He spoke with the man and during their interaction, discovered a loaded handgun on him and removed it, police said.

More officers responded to the church and arrested the man on firearm charges.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of California said Girardot is a former student at St. Mary Parish School who walked onto the church property after dropping off a younger relative there.

In a letter to parents, St. Mary Parish School said that the all-school Mass for students happened around 9:30 a.m., with church doors locked and parent observers located outside and inside of the church.

“Thanks to the vigilance and professionalism of our parent volunteers, our children remained safely inside the church for the duration of Mass and a potential crisis was averted. No students came into contact with the man, and were unaware of the situation happening outside. After Mass the children were escorted back to class,” the letter reads in part.

Girardot had more ammunition and a camouflage jacket in his vehicle that was parked near the school, federal prosecutors said.

Investigators later conducted a search of his home and found handwritten notes in a stack in his bedroom that contained references to suicide and threats, prosecutors said.

Girardot faces a possible prison sentence of five years, if convicted. He’s also being charged in state court.

The FBI and Sacramento police are conducting the investigation into the incident.

See more coverage of top California stories here | Download our app | Subscribe to our morning newsletter | Find us on YouTube here and subscribe to our channel