Arrest made after staff member ‘seriously injured’ during assault at Surrey school
Posted March 13, 2020 9:01 am.
Last Updated March 13, 2020 11:39 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
SURREY (NEWS 1130) – Surrey RCMP have arrested a 19-year-old man for a Friday morning assault that seriously injured a staff member at L.A. Matheson secondary in Surrey.
The school was initially locked down but has since reopened.
“The suspect was identified, and at approximately 4:00 pm, he was located and arrested in Vancouver. The man, who is a Surrey resident, is currently in custody. Charges have not been laid at this time,” reads a release from Surrey RCMP. “Investigators believe that this was a targeted incident. The suspect is not a student or former student of L.A. Matheson Secondary School.”
The school employee is currently in the hospital in stable condition.
The relationship between the victim and the suspect is not being disclosed, nor is information about the victim’s job at the school.
Cpl. Eleanor Sturko says she understand that questions remain, but hopes the information that has been released–that that the attack was not random, and that an arrest has been made–will assuage some anxiety.
“People want to know why, they want to know who are the people involved and for what reason something like this would take place at a school in our community,” she says. “As we do sort through things and continue to take those witness statements we don’t want to contaminate those statements. But it’s not lost on our investigators that the community does still have concerns.”
Multiple reports to NEWS 1130 suggest a teacher was stabbed, but police have not confirmed the details of the assault.
