A 17-year-old boy was shot and killed on his way to school in Loudoun County Friday morning, and police are still seeking the shooters.

Danny Centeno Miranda, a sophomore at Park View High School in Sterling, Virginia, was shot multiple times as he walked from his home to a school bus stop. The shooting occurred about 8:30 a.m. at E. Cornell and N. Duke drives, according to the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office. Miranda was rushed to a hospital, where he died.

Later on Friday, the teen's backpack and cellphone marked where he fell.

Witnesses reported seeing three young men flee the scene, all wearing hoodies. Investigators believe the teen knew his attackers and are investigating whether the incident was gang-related.

The 18 Street Gang has existed in the area for years, and MS-13 is newer, a source close to the investigation told News4.

Miranda had moved to Sterling from El Salvador a year and a half ago to live with his aunt, uncle and cousins, a devastated cousin of the teen said. The family was too distraught Friday evening to provide additional information on the teen.

The shooting terrified neighbors and put schools on lockdown and "lock out." Park View High was on lockdown, meaning students were confined to their first-period classrooms all day.

Four schools nearby -- Forest Grove Elementary School, Guilford Elementary School, Sterling Middle School and Sully Elementary School -- instituted a lock out in which no one could enter the school but normal school activities continued.

Park View High students were released on time at 3:45 p.m. Loudoun County police patrolled outside the school Friday afternoon and checked absentee lists to see which students were not present.

The usually quiet neighborhood where the shooting occurred had a heavy police presence Friday night.

Anyone with information on the shooting is asked call the Loudoun County Sheriff's Office at 703-777-0445.

Police actively searching in area of Sterling reported shooting @nbcwashington @JulieCareyNBC pic.twitter.com/fYwkWCfSGU — Sean Casey (@CaseyNBC) September 4, 2015

Stay with News4 on-air and online for more on this developing story.