Lockdown lifted at Etobicoke school after person reportedly seen with knife following fight nearby
A secondary school in Etobicoke was briefly placed under a lockdown order on Tuesday afternoon as police searched for a person who was spotted with a knife.
Police say that they were first dispatched to Lakeshore Collegiate Institute at around 2:30 p.m. after receiving reports about an individual who was seen with a knife during an altercation that took place off school property.
The lockdown remained in effect until students began being escorted out of the building at around 4 p.m.
“There was some conflicting information at the time on whether or not either of these two persons had entered the school following the altercation,” Acting Duty Inspector Jason Albanese told reporters at the scene. “As a result the school was placed in lockdown. When police arrived on scene we were able to quickly determine that the suspect was not on scene. But we were unable to locate the victim. So the school remained in lockdown until we were able to do a class-by-class search to ensure that the victim wasn't inside suffering from any kind of injuries.”
Albanese said that police have now identified the two people involved in the earlier altercation. One of those individuals is being detained, though it is not clear if they will face any charges.
Albanese described both individuals as roughly school-aged, however he refused to say whether they are students at Lakeshore Collegiate Institute.
“There are no major injuries that we are aware of at this point and we are not looking for anybody that is severely injured,” he said.
Good Samaritan broke up fight
Few details have been released about the circumstances leading up to the altercation.
However, one man who spoke with CP24 said that he saw a male and a female involved in a fight with another male and rushed to break it up.
The individuals left the scene a short time later but the man said that he saw one of them produce a “large” knife with a blade that was about the size of a ruler.
“Basically it was a girl and her boyfriend or whatnot fighting with someone else over a scooter or I don’t know what it was but it became a serious fight,” the man, whose name is Tarek, said. “I just did what I thought was right (in breaking up the fight), my cousin came to help me and that is where it ended.”
The lockdown at Lakeshore Collegiate Institute comes one day after the TDSB held a special meeting to discuss school safety following a number of recent violent incidents, including a fatal shooting outside Woburn Collegiate Institute on Oct. 31.
There was also a stabbing at Birchmount Park Collegiate Institute on Nov. 14 that left a Grade 12 student with critical injuries.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING King Charles' cancer treatment progressing well, says Buckingham Palace
King Charles III’s doctors are 'sufficiently pleased' with his cancer treatment and he is expected to return to public-facing duties, Buckingham Palace announced on Friday.
BREAKING Orca calf that was trapped in B.C. lagoon for weeks swims free
An orca whale calf that has been stranded in a B.C. lagoon for weeks after her pregnant mother died swam out on her own early Friday morning.
'Unacceptable': Trudeau reacts after AFN chief says headdress taken from plane cabin
After the Assembly of First Nations' national chief said her headdress was taken from an airplane cabin this week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the incident 'unacceptable' and a 'mistake' on the part of Air Canada.
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau on navigating post-political life, co-parenting and freedom
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau says there is 'still so much love' between her and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, as they navigate their post-separation relationship co-parenting their three children.
From faulty kids' cribs to flammable kids' bathrobes, here are the recalls of the week
Health Canada issued recalls for various items this week, including kids’ bathrobes, cribs and henna cones.
Taylor Swift dons Montreal designer's dress in 'Fortnight' video
A pair of Montreal designers' work has now been viewed over 41 million times. Taylor Swift dons a Victorian throwback black gown in her latest music video, 'Fortnight', designed by UNTTLD due Simon Belanger and Jose Manuel Saint-Jacques.
'Too young to have breast cancer': Rates among young Canadian women rising
Breast cancer rates are rising in Canada among women in their 20s, 30s and 40s, according to research by the University of Ottawa (uOttawa).
'Violation': CSIS had officer investigated after she reported a superior raped her
A CSIS officer's allegations that she was raped repeatedly by a superior in agency vehicles set off a harassment inquiry, but also triggered an investigation into her that concluded the alleged attacks were a “misuse” of agency vehicles by the woman.
'I was scared': Ontario man's car repossessed after missing two repair loan payments
An Ontario man who took out a loan to pay for auto repairs said his car was repossessed after he missed two payments.