A 16-year-old man has been arrested and a replica of a gun seized following an incident that caused an Oakville high school to be briefly closed on Tuesday afternoon.
At around 2:45 p.m., Halton Regional Police Service tweeted that White Oaks High School, near Sixth Line and McCraney Street East, was closed for reports of a man with a firearm in the area.
Several nearby schools – Gaétan-Gervais High School, Montclair Public School, St. Michael, Munns Public School and Chêne Primary School – were also placed under restraining and security orders as a result.
However, police confirmed at around 3.40pm that a suspect had been arrested and that containment and detention and security orders had been lifted at local schools.
“In this case, there were reports of np of any shot fired, so officers were able to conduct a methodical search (of the school) and locate the suspect safely,” Const said. Steve Elms told CP24. “What happens with firearm replicas is that it’s very difficult for the police or the public to discern that it’s actually a firearm replica, so for the police response we will treat it as if it were a real firearm. “
It is unclear what charges, if any, the suspect will face.