text: Jordan Sharifi, 17,  confessed to giving a gun to friend Raymond Howell, who killed himself . A teenager who allegedly gave his best friend a gun for protection from bullies has been arrested after the boy used the weapon to kill himself. Jordan Sharifi, 17, was taken into custody on Friday by police in McKinney, Texas, who say he confessed to giving a gun and  ammunition to 14-year-old Raymond Howell, Jr. On Thursday, Raymond was found in a ditch from a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Sharifi discovered Raymond's body in a rain culvert after the boy's mother called to ask him if he'd seen her son, according to an affidavit, the Dallas Morning News reported. When he saw his friend in a fetal position in the ditch, he initially thought he was sleeping and called his name, he told police. But when Raymond failed to respond, Sharifi turned him over and saw blood on his face, and found no pulse, he said. At that point, he noticed the weapon beneath Raymond's body and threw it into a nearby drainage tunnel. Sharifi led police to the scene and they initially thought Raymond had been murdered because they did not find a weapon, the affidavit states. Speaking to police, Sharifi initially denied seeing a weapon but later admitted that he had given the boy the gun and had tried to hide it when he found it beneath his body. Loss: The body of Raymond Howell, Jr., pictured, was found early on Thursday morning a few miles from his school. Sharifi found his friend's body after Raymond's mother told him the boy was missing . Friends: The boys, who became friends after Sharifi moved next door, are pictured together with a friend . On social media, he also indicated that his friend had left him a note before taking his life. The two teenagers became friends after Sharifi moved in with one of Raymond's neighbors. 'No one understands how hard it is to lose someone so close to them, and to have found them before anyone else knew,' Sharifi wrote on Instagram last week. 'But I knew that you wanted me to find you and me to tell your mom and no one else, I will always cherish the letter that you wrote to me, and left for me to find, I love you so much man.' Sharifi, who once attended McKinney Boyd High School with Howell but is no longer enrolled there, allegedly confessed to police that he'd stolen the gun from the family he was staying with. He says he gave Howell the gun to protect himself after he'd gotten into some fights recently. Sharifi was charged with fabricating or tampering with evidence, theft of a firearm and making a firearm accessible to a child. His bond has been set at $300,000. Confessed: Police say Sharifi, pictured left, led them to Howell's body before confessing he stole a gun from a family he was staying with and gave it, along with several rounds of ammunition, to Howell . Discovery: Sharifi says he found Howell's body after he got a call from Howell's mom asking him if he'd seen her son. On social media, he also indicated that the boy had left him a note before taking his life . Howell's devastated parents released a statement on Monday. 'We want to thank our friends, family and the public for the outpouring of support that we have received regarding the loss of our son and brother, Raymond "Junior" Howell. 'Even at the tender age of 14, Raymond lived a life of love, strong values and integrity that some people never fully experience... 'Our hope is that it one day allows for a truly meaningful conversation…and more importantly real change for the way we treat others in our schools and throughout our communities.' Friends recalled him as a happy and friendly teenager, but said he had recently asked for a transfer after being bullied by older students, CBS reported last week. 'There were people who didn't like him, but it's life - there's always someone that won't like you,' family friend Aleena Rogers, 16, told the Dallas Morning News. 'But those were very few and far between for him. He was loved by most everyone.' Tragedy: Howell was discovered dead near this rain culvert just a few miles from his high school . School: He was a freshman at McKinney Boyd High but had reportedly asked for a transfer because he was being bullied. The school district said on Monday it has found no evidence he had reported the bullying . She said he was always helping other people and called him 'an amazing guy with a huge heart'. But the high school said it had not found any evidence that the teenager or his parents had contacted administrators with concerns that he was the victim of bullying. The district's anti-bullying policy forbids name-calling, threats, taunting, teasing and assault, the Morning News reported. It also asks students to report bullying to school or district employees. 'The natural inclination is to find blame in these situations,' spokesman Cody Cunningham said on Monday. 'But as of today, we still have not found any reports from the family, from other peers, from teachers, of any potential bullying.' District officials continue to investigate. • For confidential help, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or click here . • For confidential support on suicide matters in the UK, call the Samaritans on 08457 90 90 90, visit a local Samaritans branch or click here .
target: Jordan Sharifi, 17, 'gave Raymond Howell, Jr., 14, a gun and ammunition to protect himself from bullies but Raymond used the gun to take his life'
  Sharifi found his friend's body in a rain culvert on Thursday morning 'and threw the gun in a nearby drainage tunnel'
  He was arrested by McKinney, Texas police on Friday and charged with theft of a firearm and making a firearm accessible to a child .
  Raymond left him a note before he took his life, Sharifi said .
  The school district says it has found no evidence that Raymond or his family contacted them about bullying .