ON Wednesday, October 18 at approximately 10:45 a.m., a New Westminster Police officer was at New Westminster Secondary School for an unrelated matter when he was made aware of a student who was in possession of a knife and causing a disturbance inside the school.

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. A knife was seized by the officer and, thankfully, no one suffered any injuries during the arrest.

“Understandably there has been speculation about what occurred yesterday,” said Sgt. Andrew Leaver on Thursday. “We want to provide this update so both parents and students have a clearer picture of what occurred.”

He added: “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.”

The police investigation into this incident is in the early stages and police are working with school administration and witnesses. At this time, charges against the youth are being considered. If you have information related to this incident, you’re asked to call 604-525-5411 and reference file 23-17635. If students or staff ever fear for their safety, they are asked to call 9-1-1.