Suspect Search Closes Fort Worth School
FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - Police activity temporarily closed a Fort Worth Independent School District campus on Thursday morning as kids started arriving for classes. The incident happened at Sagamore Hill Elementary School, located in the 700 block of South Hughes Avenue, just south of Interstate-30 on the southeast side of the city.
Law enforcement officials were at the school actively searching for burglary suspects. A security guard noticed a broken window at the building and surveillance camera footage provided more information. Two younger people -- possibly children -- broke into the campus at about 2:40 a.m. early Thursday morning and were seen inside of the building. It was not known, however, if the suspects were still inside of the school.
Police assembled a SWAT team outside of the building and went inside in an attempt to find the suspects. Law enforcement officials used a canine unit to assist in their effort. The school building is very large, contains many small hiding spaces, and authorities did not know if the suspects were armed.
It was then later determined that the burglary suspects were no longer in the building, and police left the campus at around 9:30 a.m. on Thursday.
According to school district spokesman Clint Bond, students and staff members on Thursday were asked to go to the parking lot of Sagamore Hills Church, located at the corner of South Hughes Avenue and Panola Avenue. They then went over to the Wilkerson Greines Athletic Center, a school district facility, for regular classes. The students headed back to the school after the police situation was resolved.
"They tell me that 'in an abundance of caution' that's why they brought in the SWAT team, just to make sure that the building was clear before we brought children back," said Bond.
However, most children simply went home for the day. Now that the school is cleared and open once again, students are asked to return to classes as scheduled. But, Bond said, nobody will be counted absent on Thursday.
"Everything's good," said parent David Frazer after the scene was clear. "I'm happy with the response, what they did. They took care of everything. Nobody got into the school, no kids was in the school when it happened, and that's a good thing."
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