Sunbury College deploys security guards and police patrols after threat
Police have confirmed a Sunbury school is now safe, following earlier patrols by officers and security guards after a threat was allegedly made against students and staff. A man has been charged over the matter.
North West
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A Sunbury school being patrolled by police officers and security guards today after an earlier threat has been declared safe.
The Education Department released a statement this morning advising police had declared Sunbury College safe.
“The matter has been reported to and dealt with by Victoria Police,” a spokeswoman said.
The school has so far declined to comment directly.
Police confirmed an 18-year-old man was arrested in the early hours of this morning and had been charged over threats allegedly made against a Sunbury school this week.
The school had earlier deployed security guards and police patrols after a threat was allegedly made against students and staff.
Sunbury College principal Darryn Kruse alerted parents and carers to the “rumoured threat” in a letter last night following information received by the school.
He said police had been called to investigate the matter.
Police this morning confirmed a man had been charged over threats allegedly made against a Sunbury school this week.
“Police arrested an 18-year-old Sunbury man on December 5 about 1:15am,” spokeswoman Nikki Ladgrove said.
“The man has been bailed and is due to appear at Broadmeadows Magistrates’ Court on April 30, 2020.”
She said police would still patrol the area today.
Mr Kruse said the health and safety of students and staff at the Racecourse Rd college was their top priority.
“We are taking an extremely cautious approach and extra security measures have been put in place … including police patrols,” he said.
“Security guards will also be on the school grounds.
“I would like to emphasise that we feel confident that the school is safe and there is no cause for alarm, but we are taking a cautious approach.”
The nature of the threat is unknown and the school has declined to comment.
The Department of Education has also been contacted.
Parents took to Facebook last night to discuss the concerning development, with one posting “who’s sending there (sic) kid to school tomorrow”.
One said the principal’s warning was “a bit vague”, while another said needing police and security must mean the threat was “extreme”.
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Some parents, whose children attend different schools, said they would not send their kids to school today if it concerned them.
“If the school was seriously concerned I’d say they’d shut it down for the day,” one said.
Parents of children with connecting buses at Sunbury College also commented that they had been unaware of the threat until it was posted on Facebook by other parents – and said they would be driving their kids to school tomorrow.