Quebec college lockdown ends, police find no evidence of 'criminal act'

A lockdown at a Quebec College ended Friday evening after police were called to investigate a report of a "potential active shooter."

Students and staff at the Collège Lionel-Groulx in Sainte-Thérèse, Que., were told earlier in the afternoon to lock themselves inside as police descended on the school in the off-island suburb northwest of Montreal.

By 5:45 p.m., people inside the school were gradually let out as Thérèse-De Blainville police (RIPTB) said in an update on its website that "no criminal act" had taken place at the college in the previous hours. There were no arrests and no reported injuries, the statement said. 

Investigators are trying to locate a person holding an object who was filmed in a video that circulated on social media moments after the lockdown started. The person is not considered a suspect, according to police. 

Police respond to College Lionel-Groulx in Sainte-Therese, Que., after receiving a report of a possibly armed suspect on Friday, Nov. 18, 2022. (Source: Noovo Info)

"The RIPTB wishes to highlight the excellent collaborative work with the staff and students of the college, the police services of the cities of Saint-Eustache, Mirabel, Blainville and Deux-Montagnes, the CISSS des Laurentides and the City of Sainte-Thérèse. The rapid intervention of these partners will certainly have contributed to the effectiveness of this operation," said police Chief Insp. Luc Larocque in a written statement.

Police received the "potential active shooter" report shortly after 1:40 p.m. Officers responding to the college told the public to stay away from the area.

Family members took to social media to report students were safe. While some remained locked inside through the afternoon, others had received warnings to stay away from the building.

"Police are carrying out searches in the college," read an internal alert to students and staff, instructing them not to leave to use the facilities, but instead to create a private space if necessary.

"My grandson was able to leave," wrote one woman in a social media post. "The world is crazy, crazy, crazy!"

Shortly after 5 p.m., the school sent another internal memo notifying students and staff they could seek mental health help at a nearby community centre.

THIRD LOCKDOWN IN RECENT DAYS

Quebec's newly-appointed Public Safety Minister Francois Bonnardel wrote online that he is aware of the Friday intervention, and that his teams were "monitoring the situation closely."

The lockdown marks the third police intervention at a Quebec college in recent days.

On Nov. 11, a 19-year-old male was arrested wearing a bullet-proof vest at CEGEP de Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, west of Montreal. There were no reported injuries. 

The same day, just hours later, four people were injured and sent to hospital following a shooting near Collège Montmorency in Laval, Que. The next day, police said they had reason to believe the shooting was gang-related.