Terrifying spate of incidents at primary school next door to Richmond’s injecting room

Shocking documents reveal the true extent of what Richmond West Primary School students have encountered since the injecting room opened.

A spate of terrifying incidents at a primary school next door to Richmond’s controversial injecting room can be revealed.

Documents released to the Herald Sun under Freedom of Information laws reveal the true extent of what Richmond West Primary School students have encountered since the injecting room opened in 2018.

It comes after the Herald Sun revealed a man being found dead near the school last year, forcing the school authorities to direct students and parents away from the main entrance.

The school had also been placed into lockdown twice in less than a week last year.

Concerned parents Beth Halls, Elena Markushina with her children Roman and Maxim, Jo Murphy and son Cade near the Richmond injection rooms. Picture: David Caird

Some of the shocking incidents on school grounds include:

• A man exposing himself outside the school fence, next to the playground in November last year.

• Two offenders who made their way through the side gates of the school and appeared to be having sex on school grounds in August 2020

• The school being forced into lockdown in March last year after a male tried to gain entry into the school and ignored requests to leave, the school was forced to call police as the man was circling nearby the front gates.

• A person located with drugs on school grounds after police were called due to them loitering, also in March last year.

A man is arrested inside Richmond primary school grounds with drugs and knife. Picture: Jason Edwards

The documents also detail a litany of other incidents nearby the injecting room including drug use and thefts.

It can also be revealed that police immediately responded to a report of a female injecting drugs at Lennox St on Tuesday, May 3 at 2.15pm.

Police arrived at about 2.30pm and the woman had left the area. Inquiries into the incident remain ongoing.

Photos obtained by the Herald Sun show a woman loitering inside school grounds at the time, despite the school beefing up its security last year, which included installing an electronic lock and video intercom system at the inner pedestrian gate and electronic security at the reception doors.

A man is arrested inside Richmond primary school grounds with drugs and knife. Picture: Jason Edwards

Opposition mental health spokeswoman Emma Kealy said: “Primary schools should be a safe place for students to learn, not a place where they’re exposed to drug use, sex acts and people passed out or dead due to overdose.”

A Victoria Police spokeswoman said since the indecent act was reported in November, police were not aware of any other incidents of this nature in the vicinity of the school.

“Any incident of criminal activity, including people exposing themselves or taking drugs in public, is a concern to Victoria Police,” the spokeswoman said.

“Everyone in the community deserves to go about their daily lives without being subjected to crime, especially children.”

The spokeswoman said local police continued to work hard to disrupt drug related crime in the Richmond area.

A man openly injects drugs into his leg in a thoroughfare alley just behind Victoria Street, Richmond. Picture: Jason Edwards

“Recently 20 people were arrested over three days as part of Operation Cargo which ran from April 26 to 28.

“Those arrested were for offences including trafficking heroin, armed robbery, theft, drug possession, traffic offending and breaching court orders.”

She said the Yarra Tasking Team and the Highly Visible Community Engagement Team had also executed search warrants on Friday last week on Highett St.

“Four people were arrested for drug trafficking, drug possession and outstanding warrants. Over 60 grams of heroin was seized along with over $6,000 in cash.

“In addition to investigating drug crime and apprehending offenders, local police conduct regular patrols in the community on foot, in vehicles and on bikes.”

A state government spokesman said: “The safety of the community is always our top priority and there are a number of measures in place to ensure that including increased security measures.”

“Drug use and anti-social behaviour has been an issue the North Richmond community has grappled with for decades and that’s why the medically supervised injecting room is in this location,” he said.

“The MSIR was established to save lives and reduce the harm caused by drugs – which is exactly what the data shows it’s doing.

“Since opening it has safely managed more than 4600 overdoses and saved at least 44 lives – it has directly taken pressure off local hospitals, reduced ambulance call outs, led to a decrease in public injecting and saved lives.”

The Department of Education was contacted for comment.

Originally published as Terrifying spate of incidents at primary school next door to Richmond’s injecting room