Fire arrows, Molotov cocktails used in attempted school arson
A southeast Calgary school has withstood multiple arson attempts throughout the month of February, and police are trying to discover who may be responsible.
St. Isabella Elementary Junior High School has seen four separate occasions where young males were witnessed attempting to set the school on fire.
Police believe that all four incidents are connected, though have not yet been able to identify the young males captured on the school’s security cameras, according to a release from the Calgary Police Service.
The first attempt was on February 7, when witnesses say four young males were seen attempting to light arrows on fire before shooting them at the school. Attempts were also made on February 12, 15, and 23 at the same school, and police believe that Molotov cocktails were being used in all three subsequent attempts.
In the February 23 attempt, a witness extinguished a small fire that had caught at the back of the school, according to the release.
A fifth attempted arson incident occurred on Saturday, February 18, though this time it was at McKenzie Lake School, where four youth were seen fleeing in a four-door sedan.
McKenzie Lake School, Calgary (Google Maps)
Police are still investigating if the McKenzie Lake School attempt is connected to the four at St. Isabella Elementary Junior High School.
“This is a concerning situation that is putting people at risk,” said Calgary Police Service general investigations unit acting staff sergeant, Scott McCann, in the release.
“Many different groups host extracurricular activities on school property outside of regular school hours … We encourage parents who live in the area to have conversations with their kids about these incidents. It is very likely that somebody knows something.”
Police are asking that anyone with information on the investigation, or who have their own security cameras in the area, to contact police at 403-266-1234, or anonymously through Crime Stoppers by calling 1-800-222-84-77 or online through their website.