Keysborough Secondary College principal Aaron Sykes slashed following an alleged altercation with a teacher
Keysborough Secondary College was plunged into lockdown after principal Aaron Sykes was stabbed in a terrifying incident. The teacher accused of attacking him was taken to hospital under police guard.
A principal has been stabbed allegedly by a teacher in a “distressing” and “traumatic” incident at a school in Melbourne’s southeast on Tuesday afternoon.
Keysborough Secondary College students were forced to hide under desks as the violence unfolded.
Principal Aaron Sykes was stabbed following an alleged altercation with the teacher at the Acacia campus about 3pm, according to witnesses.
One source close to the incident said: “it was traumatic. There were others involved.”
In a joint letter to students and parents, seen by the Herald Sun, Acacia and Banksia campus principals Natalie Fode and Richard Hastings described the attack as “distressing”, saying “any form of violence within our school is entirely unacceptable”.
They added that the alleged offender would “not at any stage be back on school grounds”.
Mr Sykes, who took up the position at the Keysborough school last year, was taken to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The alleged attacker was seen being wheeled into an ambulance on a stretcher, his armed bandaged. On Tuesday night he remained in hospital under police guard.
Some sources said the incident occurred near the science block.
One student, who asked not to be named, told the Herald Sun a teacher ordered them to hide under tables during the ordeal.
“We hid under the tables and didn’t make a sound for 20 minutes,” they said.
“It felt scary … I’m shocked.
“A couple of minutes after the school bell rang, there was an emergency lockdown announcement,” they said.
“All the students and teachers had to get into one room and wait.
“(Then) the police came and we were allowed to go home.”
Recent school leavers Leah, 17, Christina, 17, and Genki, 18, heard about the incident as it was unfolding from students who were inside at the time.
Living just around the corner, the trio rushed to check out what was happening.
Christina said she was “shocked” and “startled” to hear what had happened, adding the school had a tight-knit community.
“I’m shocked … also angry, I was like ‘why would you do something like this?’,” she said.
“He’s just doing his job at the end of the day.”
Leah said: “It’s always other schools, never you own.”
In a text to parents, Keysborough College confirmed the Acacia campus had been plunged into lockdown in the wake of the incident but assured them no students had been harmed.
In Mr Hastings and Ms Fode’s letter, they said: “We are writing to you regarding a distressing incident which resulted in our principal Aaron Sykes sustaining injuries whilst at the Acacia campus today.
“Aaron was assisted by emergency services at the soonest opportunity and taken to hospital.
“We have spoken to Aaron and he is recovering well and in good spirits given the circumstances.
“We are proud of the safe and supportive culture that is the norm at our school.
“We want to assure you that the health and safety of our students and staff is always our highest priority.”
A Department of Education spokesperson confirmed Mr Sykes had been harmed during a “distressing” incident, but declined to comment further.
“We are grateful to staff at Keysborough Secondary College who acted quickly to contact emergency services,” the spokesperson said.
“As this matter is under investigation by Victoria Police, it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time.”
A Victoria Police spokesperson said officers quickly arrived on scene and arrested a man and will be interviewed.
“The investigation remains ongoing.”
The incident comes just days after Brentwood Park Primary in Berwick was placed into lockdown when an 11-year-old boy armed with a kitchen knife and a toy gun allegedly stabbed another boy.
A female staff member was also treated for minor injuries.
Both Brentwood Park Primary and Kambrya College were briefly locked down over last week’s ordeal.
The 11-year-old did not face any charges because he was under the minimum age of criminal responsibility.
Anyone who witnessed the incident, has footage or any information can call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or make a report online.
