19-year-old arrested in connection with threats that closed Westdale Secondary School in Hamilton

A 19-year-old man is facing charges in connection with threats made at a Hamilton high school amid a series of similar incidents at other schools across the city.

Hamilton police said the man is charged with two counts of uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm and released on an undertaking.

The charges are linked to threats made at Westdale Secondary School, which was closed on Friday as a precautionary measure.

In a letter to families on Thursday evening, the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board (HWDSB) said the decision was made to close Westdale on June 3 as a precaution as a result of “new information about a potential threat to school safety.”

“Hamilton Police Service continue to investigate this as well as the threat of shooting, which was found written on a bathroom wall, shared yesterday,” wrote Sue Dunlop, the HWDSB’s interim director of education.

It’s the second arrest made in connection with threats made at Hamilton schools in recent days.

On Thursday, police announced that they had arrested a 14-year-old girl and charged her with mischief in connection with a message left on school property at St. Jean de Brébeuf Catholic Secondary School.

Investigators say they expect to make more arrests in the coming days.

There have been threats of school shootings written on the walls of bathroom stalls at multiple Hamilton schools over the past week, including Westdale;  the first one was at Bishop Tonnos Secondary in Ancaster last Friday.

Perry Mason, a former school resource officer with Hamilton police, told Global News that while these kinds of threats have been occurring at schools in the city for decades, rarely – if ever – do they actually turn out to be legitimate.

He added that they used to be more commonly called in as bomb threats, especially on a Friday afternoon or when exams were scheduled, but said social media has changed the nature of the threats.

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“One way or another, social media is at play,” he said during an interview on Global News Radio’s Hamilton Today.

“For the most part, people who make these kinds of threats try to stay anonymous because if they get investigated, they’re going to find out what’s happening. As a matter of fact, I know that these things are investigated at the CID level or detective level. They’re paid attention to, for sure, and they’re properly investigated every time.”

In an open letter to parents on June 3, HWDSB chair Dawn Danko warned families that the board would not hesitate to pursue consequences, including criminal charges in addition to suspension or expulsion from school.

‘The safety of students and staff is our top priority,” Danko wrote.

“HWDSB reports every school threat to Hamilton Police Service. We support police in their investigations into school threats.”

Anyone who has any information about the threats is asked to contact Hamilton police at 905-546-4925 or anonymously contact Crime Stoppers online or by calling 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).