Three Waterloo Region Schools Under Hold and Secure After Swatting Calls

Three schools in Kitchener, Wilmot and North Dumfries were placed under hold and secure Tuesday after threatening phone calls police say were swatting incidents.

Waterloo Region police investigate swatting calls to three schools

Three schools in Waterloo Region were placed under hold and secure orders Tuesday morning after receiving threatening phone calls, cbc.ca reports. Police have since classified the incidents as swatting — false reports deliberately made to trigger an emergency police response.

According to the Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS), all three calls came in within a ten-minute window. "Between 9 a.m. and 9:10 a.m., three schools in Kitchener, Wilmot, and North Dumfries received a telephone call from an unidentified individual," WRPS said in a release Tuesday afternoon. "During each call, the caller stated they were enroute to the school with weapons and issued threats to harm staff and students."

The three schools affected were Alpine Public School in Kitchener, Ayr Public School in North Dumfries and Baden Public School in Wilmot Township. Officers attended and cleared each location.

WRPS spokesperson Cherri Greeno confirmed the calls appeared coordinated. "They are similar in nature, came in around the same time and detectives are currently investigating," Greeno said.

The Waterloo Region District School Board stated that the threat was considered external to the school buildings and that many regular school routines remained in place. Access to and from the schools was restricted as a precaution.

The school board asked parents, families and caregivers not to call or come to the schools during a hold and secure, noting that staff's primary focus was keeping students safe.

The WRPS General Investigations Unit is continuing its investigation. Anyone with information is asked to contact police or Crime Stoppers.

Source: Google News CA — Crime (EN)