Two 13-year-old Coquitlam boys have been identified as suspects in last week's Montgomery middle school vandalism spree that resulted in thousands of dollars worth of glass and window breakage.
But it will be up to Crown counsel to determine whether criminal charges or alternative measures are most appropriate given the age of the boys, according to Coquitlam RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Michael McLaughlin.
“Because it is a very serious file, we are going to leave it up to the Crown to ultimately make that decision,” McLaughlin said.
Instead of charging the youth, the Crown could recommend an alternative measure, which could involve a process of restorative action, where victims and perpetrators meet to talk about what happened and how it can be remediated.
It’s not known whether the school district would seek damages through civil courts, but McLaughlin said that is one option that could be pursued.
School District 43 did not provide any additional information about the case, stating privacy concerns.
The names of the suspects cannot be revealed because they are youths and McLaughlin didn't say whether they attend Monty.
Wednesday's police announcement comes 10 days after the incident, in which the school was broken into and glass was broken in about 80 windows; damage was also done to computer equipment and a vending machine. Some fire extinguishers also went missing.
Police were able to crack the case with the help of witnesses, police interviews, RCMP Dog Service and other investigative techniques, McLaughlin said. He did not say whether social media was also used to track down the perpetrators because he is unable to share details about the investigation.
But McLaughlin said social media, such as the popular photo-sharing app Snapchat, is one avenue of investigation.
“That’s certainly something we’re aware of and we’re aware of how important social media is to young people,” McLaughlin said, adding that police did see a lot of comments of support for the middle school on social media.
As well, members of the community called the police to offer help after the vandalism spree that generated a lot of traditional media coverage.
“Young people, they really want to help. It really does present a silver lining that started out with a negative event.”
Earlier this week, it was revealed that students and staff from Scott Creek middle school sent chocolates and sticky notes with positive messages to their Montgomery peers to help them recover from the incident.
