Two people are in hospital with stab wounds after a violent incident that sent Hillcrest High School into lockdown Monday morning.
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The two victims are in serious but stable condition, police said.
By 1 p.m., Ottawa police said there was no longer a threat to public safety, and Hillcrest moved out of lockdown into “secure school” mode.
Four suspects, all youths, were taken into police custody. Police remained on the scene Monday afternoon to continue their investigation.
Ottawa police received a call for an assault with a weapon inside the school at 9:10 a.m. on Jan. 13; responding officers found one young victim suffering from serious injuries from an edged weapon at the Elmvale Acres high school.
A second victim with similar injuries sought treatment at hospital.
The school was placed in a lockdown while police searched the school. One youth suspect was arrested as soon as police arrived, while three additional suspects were arrested during the search of the school. The suspects cannot be identified under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
A handful of concerned parents waited outside the school while texting with their children, all of whom were inside locked classrooms. More than a dozen students also waited for hours in the cold for a chance to get into school.
This newspaper observed police taking two young men out of the school in handcuffs.
At least eight police cars and two ambulances were on scene.
The public high school is on Dauphin Road, just off Smyth Road. Police asked the public to avoid the area.
There were about 500 students enrolled in the school in 2022; the most recent year figures were not available.
— With files from Tony Caldwell
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