WAHPETON, ND (Valley News Live) – The Wahpeton Police Department has released body camera footage of its response to an incident earlier this month.

Officers were called to an apartment complex along 17th Ave. N. for a report of two men on a balcony with a gun. It was around 9:00 PM on November 3, 2024.

It was a frightening situation for some neighbors and a lesson learned for others.

Police first knocked on the door of an apartment, thinking it might be the right one. Within minutes, they realize they’ve got the wrong guy. They explain the situation and let the family continue their night before going next door.

Two college-age boys answer. When asked if they were out with a gun, they said yes.

Police searched the apartment and found several weapons. Teenagers cooperate.

“The reason I took out my guns was because I saw the police surrounding the neighborhood,” says one teenager. “We did it for our own safety.”

Police were in the neighborhood looking for children related to another case. The teenagers said they were afraid.

“You have the right to bear arms. You have the right to defend yourself,” police said. “If you’re that scared, maybe you should call law enforcement before you start walking around with guns.”

The police used the situation as a teaching moment.

“You understand why I responded the way I did, right? We hear someone has a rifle, we respond with rifles,” police told the teenagers.

They took it a step further before leaving by taking the teenagers fake IDs and making them throw their alcohol down the sink.

The teenagers told officers they would apologize to their neighbors.

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