Six underage suspects arrested. Eight Montreal schools targeted. The series of anonymous threats that have targeted schools in recent days reveals “a trend to watch,” worries the Police Department of the City of Montreal (SPVM) and experts, who however would not go to speak of a “phenomenon”.
The Cavelier-De LaSalle school opened its doors Monday morning under police surveillance. Shortly before the bell, students in a hurry were greeted by patrollers on the lookout, stationed on the outskirts of the establishment.
“Our parents told us to be careful and to give news [au cours de la journée] Jeanne said, a bag thrown over her shoulder.
On Friday, threats that an armed individual would show up at LaSalle school circulated on social media. In accordance with the recommendation of the SPVM, the establishment remained open, but acquired a police presence.
The Cavelier-De LaSalle school is no exception. Eight schools in Montreal are currently the subject of an investigation by the SPVM Cyberenquête module for similar threats. Six people, aged 13 to 17, have been arrested in connection with the case.
In all cases, the modus operandi of the suspects was the same. They published violent comments through anonymous profiles on Instagram “in order to sow fear and confusion,” said the SPVM. It read, for example, that a “school shooting” or a knife attack in a nearby school would take place the next day.
According to our information, Calixa-Lavallée high school, in Montreal-North, and Sainte-Anne College, in Lachine, have been targeted by anonymous threats. Two schools in Montérégie, one in Châteauguay and the other in Pincourt, were also closed on Monday for the same reasons.
Harmless hoax or real threat?
The SPVM believes it is dealing with a phenomenon of training on social networks, “a new trend to watch”. He therefore believes that the number of schools targeted could increase in the coming days. “What is important to understand is that the more there are who do it, the more there are who want to do it,” said Manuel Couture, spokesperson for the SPVM.
The criminologist Maria Mourani would not go so far as to qualify the event as a “phenomenon”. For that, it would be necessary that the cases be repeated and constant in time. Rather, she sees an “imitation effect” fueled by social networks.
“What we see with social networks and video games is that the new generation is desensitized to violence. On the web, there is a virtuality that makes violence immaterial. Even young people who desecrate threats do not realize the importance of their words, ”explains the president of Mourani-Criminologie, which calls for more digital education on the part of parents and schools.
Should we be worried about Monday’s event? University of Montreal criminology professor David Décary-Hétu is reassuring, but cautious.
“It remains something relatively rare in Quebec. That said, the weak point of hoaxes is that you have no choice but to react because someone could take the opportunity to make an attack, ”said the professor, who underlines the sophistication of the abilities. online monitoring of police services.
Hoax or not, the act has a real impact, and its author is exposed to criminal prosecution, insists the public relations officer Manuel Couture. “Even if it’s written anonymously, we are able to trace them. It is a very serious crime that the SPVM takes very seriously, ”he recalls.
Concerned parents
Within the school grounds, a handful of students hung their coats in their lockers. In the early hours of the morning, management expected no more than half of its students – two-thirds, at best. Many cautious parents prefer to keep their children at home.
“Already, when there is no threat, I feel worried about filing [mon fils] at school, far from my protection. If there’s one more risk, it’s worse, ”said Henfy Thompson, sitting behind the wheel of his SUV, from which his son had just left.
Not far away, a group of girls were chatting about the hectic weekend. “The fact that there are a lot of police officers makes us feel secure,” said Jeanne. And her friend, Bobby, added: “It’s mostly the fact that it’s getting bigger at other schools that scares me more. ”
The Minister of Education, Jean-François Roberge, thanked the school staff and the population for their vigilance, which allowed “the worst” to be avoided. In the press scrum on Monday, Prime Minister François Legault described the threats as “worrying”, recalling his government’s latest announcements to increase the police presence and support for organizations working with young people.
At the office of the mayoress of Montreal, Valérie Plante, we did not wish to comment on the file on Monday.
With Henri Ouellette-Vézina, Press