Replica guns cause alarm in Loudoun

An Ashburn resident called the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office on Monday afternoon to report a young man walking through the neighborhood carrying a gun,

Turned out it was one of the latest cases in which "airsoft guns," which look like real guns but shoot lightweight plastic BBs, have caused alarm.

"They are replicas of real firearms," said Loudoun Sheriff's spokesman Kraig Troxell.

Deputies found four boys searching for a place to play with the guns, Troxell said. He said the deputies reminded them that it's a misdemeanor offense to fire the guns in most areas of the county.

The county's rules and a use map appear in this sheriff's newsletter.

-- Maria Glod