A New Westminster Secondary School student was arrested after bringing a knife to school and causing a disturbance on Wednesday morning.
Video posted on social media sites showed a student being led to a police car by members of the New Westminster Police Department. The Record contacted the New Westminster Police Department and the school district for comment.
“Understandably, there has been speculation about what occurred yesterday,” said NWPD spokesperson Sgt. Andrew Leaver. “We want to provide this update so both parents and students have a clearer picture of what occurred. While there is speculation relating to a student being in possession of weapons, we can confirm that no firearms nor replica firearms were involved in this situation, and no injuries were sustained by anyone involved.”
According to a NWPD news release, a New Westminster police officer was at the high school for an unrelated matter when he was made aware of a student who was in possession of a knife and allegedly causing a disturbance inside the school. The incident occurred around 10:45 a.m. on Wednesday, Oct. 18.
“When the officer located the youth, he worked to de-escalate the situation, and after a brief physical struggle, the student was taken into police custody,” said the news release. “A knife was seized by the officer, and thankfully, no one suffered any injuries during the arrest.”
Police are in the early stages of investigating this incident and are working with school administration and witnesses. Anyone with information on this incident is asked to call 604-525-5411 and reference file 23-17635
“At this time, charges against the youth are being considered,” said the news release.
The New Westminster Police Department reminds students or staff to call 911 if they fear for their safety.
Principal Murray McLeod sent out an email to NWSS families on Wednesday afternoon.
“This morning, there was a commotion that occurred in the main office. Concerns regarding student safety were brought to the administration’s attention. The admin team were addressing the concern and engaged the police for support,” he wrote. “Police attended, and everything is well in hand. Currently, there is no concern regarding safety for students or staff in the school or in the wider community.”
Responding to parents’ concern on social media, school board chair Maya Russell said it was “understandably scary” to hear about an incident at NWSS. She said an update on the incident would be available Thursday, once the school district had been able to review what happened and verify details that were still emerging.
“For now, I can confirm that there was no gun involved,” she wrote on a local Facebook page on Wednesday night. “There was an incident involving one student, and staff responded swiftly and appropriately, and received assistance from the NWPD.”
The Record has also received an official statement from the district regarding the NWSS incident:
“The district can confirm that yesterday morning, school administration responded to a student in crisis at New Westminster Secondary School,” said the statement. “Coincidentally, police were on-site at the time and were made aware of the fact that the student was in possession of a knife. Given this information, the police were compelled to act on this matter. It is our belief that this situation did not pose a safety risk to our greater student body or staff, and we continue to take a student-centered and supportive approach. New Westminster Schools is committed to ensuring all students feel safe and secure when they attend our schools to learn and grow.”
In addition to the email that went out to NWSS families on Wednesday, a follow-up message was being sent out today. It echoed the district’s general message to the community, with one addition:
“I want to follow up on my communication to you from yesterday to provide clarification. Misinformation travels fast on social media, and I wish to dispel one of the more alarming narratives by confirming that no firearm was involved in yesterday’s event,” said the email to NWSS families.
