Police in Longueuil have arrested three teenagers and seized an air gun after reports surfaced of an armed man walking through a high school campus.
Tensions ran high at Jacques Rousseau high school Monday morning as students were told to hide under their desks and lock their classrooms while police searched for a suspect.
They were on campus responding to a 911 call about a young man seen wielding a gun on campus.
Students used their cell phones to alert parents and post updates on social media during the operation, which ended with the arrest of three of their classmates.
“It was really stressful,” said student Rosalie Eve Beaule. “Everyone was stressed out.”
One of the suspects was carrying an air pistol, according to Constable Patrick Barriere of the Longueil Police. Several witness accounts indicate the weapon was a c02-powered paintball gun, which one of the teen's may have brought to school to sell.
Responding to distress messages from their children, groups of parents rushed to the South Shore high school in hopes of getting more information. They could not access school grounds however, as police had set up a security perimeter around the school during the raid.
As the three 16-year-old suspects were carted off in a police car, parents banged on the cruiser's window and hurled insults at the teenagers.
During the operation, of e of the students sat quietly in student Francis Therrien’s history class.
“Police burst in and shouted, ‘It’s him!’” said Therrien. “I couldn’t believe it.”
The suspects were described as normal and well-integrated by Marie-Victorin School Board Director Raynald Thibeault.
Police would not speculate as to why three students would bring an air pistol to school.
“We still have a lot of people to meet to find out what was the relation between the three, and what was their motive to bring this gun to school,” said Nancy Colagiacomo of the Longueuil police.
One parent said she'd heard the incident stemmed from a previous conflict between two groups on campus.
"What I heard is there was a fight and the guy came back with two other guys and a gun," the parent said.
Despite reports of a conflict, it remains unclear if anyone was threatened with the air-powered gun.
The school was locked down Monday afternoon, and none of the 2,000 students allowed to enter or leave the building. They were released three hours later. It's unclear whether or not classes will resume on Tuesday.
Parents with questions about the operation are urged to call the Longueuil police hotline at 450-463-7191.
The Jacques Rousseau High School is on Gentilly St. East near Roland Therrien Blvd.
