Two Adelaide Hills students have been suspended in wake of alleged 5yo girl lure attempt

Two Adelaide Hills high school students have been suspended after allegedly attempting to lure a five-year-old girl into a car park, sparking a police investigation.

Two high school students have been suspended after allegedly attempting to lure a young girl to “see a puppy dog in a car”, Catholic Education SA has now confirmed.

The Messenger revealed a family removed their children from St Francis de Sales College last week after their child in Reception was approached by an older student.

A Catholic Education SA spokesperson confirmed two St Francis high school students were “immediately suspended”, but would not reveal what the involvement of the pupils in the incident was.

St Francis de Sales College on Dutton Rd, Mt Barker, SA.

The father of the young girl slammed the school for what he called an unsatisfactory response to a situation which left his child fearful of older students.

He was critical of the mediation offered which would put the onus on his daughter to “trust strangers”.

“They are hoping it goes away, a teenage boy made a silly statement – diminish it down to a prank – but now the onus is on me, as a parent, to make a decision, do I just let that occur?,” the father said.

St Francis de Sales College principal Gavin McGlaughlin said all parents spoken to have supported the school in its response.

“The matter was dealt with swiftly and proportionately, in accordance with the procedures that guide all three education sectors in South Australia, with contact to the families and consequences to students involved occurring within 24 hours,” he said.

A parent of a St Francis school student told The Messenger she too decided to remove her child from the school for a short period last week in support of the family.

“It’s been played down as a joke,” she said.

She said she was one of many parents who pulled their children out of the school and had let school administration know it was regarding concerns about safety.

SA Police continues to investigate the situation.