A man who opened fire at a Georgia elementary school Tuesday was armed with an AK-47 `` and a number of other weapons , '' police said . The shooter barricaded himself in the school 's front office with employees before eventually surrendering to police , DeKalb County Police Chief Cedric Alexander told reporters . No one was injured , authorities said . Suspected shooter Michael Brandon Hill , 20 , faces charges including aggravated assault on a police officer , terroristic threats and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon , police spokeswoman Mekka Parish said . The shooter fired about six shots from inside the school toward officers as they approached outside , Alexander said , and police returned fire . Police said it is unclear whether the suspect had any connection with the school , the Ronald E. McNair Discovery Learning Academy , which is about seven miles east of downtown Atlanta . Investigators think the gunman entered the school behind someone , Alexander said . As the standoff unfolded , a caller told CNN affiliate WSB 's assignment desk that she was in the school office with a gunman . The man had a message he wanted the woman to share with the local television station , assignment editor Lacey LeCroy said , describing the conversation during WSB 's newscast Tuesday evening . `` She said he told her to tell me he was not afraid to die , '' LeCroy said . The gunman also threatened to harm police , the woman said , according to LeCroy . Later , LeCroy heard gunshots crack over the television station 's phone line . The woman in the school office was n't sure who had fired , LeCroy said . Investigators initially suspected there could be explosives in a vehicle the shooter parked outside the school , but police found no explosives inside , Parish said . Teachers and administrators guided students out to a lawn outside the school 's gym , where they remained while investigators combed the school to ensure there was no other threat . Concerns about explosives forced SWAT teams to cut a hole in a fence by the school and evacuate students through the yard of a neighboring home , Alexander said . On a nearby street , school buses waited to take them to safety . `` This was a very unusual situation where we had to get the kids away from any possible explosives , '' Alexander said . This was the second arrest in six months for Hill , of DeKalb County . In March , he was arrested in neighboring Henry County on suspicion of `` terrorist threats and acts , '' according to a record in the county sheriff 's office . He was released on bail five days later . Information on what led to that arrest or whether the case is resolved was n't immediately available . Students were reunited with their parents at a nearby shopping center Tuesday afternoon . The children smiled and waved , and parents cheered , as each school bus arrived with students aboard . `` Everybody 's safe , '' DeKalb County Schools Superintendent Michael Thurmond said . `` This thing came out for the best , '' said Dale Holmes , DeKalb County 's assistant police chief . `` Thank God no one was hurt -- not even the suspect . ''
Suspect was arrested in March on suspicion of `` terrorist threats and acts '' a charge that carries the death penalty if he is convicted. Witness to CNN affiliate WSB : Shooter said `` he was not afraid to die '' Shooter was armed with an AK-47 `` and a number of other weapons , '' police say .