Winnipeg police say an arrest has been made and charges are pending after a video was posted to YouTube in which a male made threats against students at a Winnipeg high school.
Kelly Barkman, superintendent at the River East Transcona School Division, said he learned of the video on Thursday morning just as the school day was beginning.
He said Kildonan East Collegiate was quickly put on high alert, which means staff monitor the premises for strangers and all doors except the front door are locked.
Barkman said the high alert will continue on Friday "unless something changes overnight."
Winnipeg police said they were not yet releasing any information about the suspect.
The incident comes just a week after two staff members were fatally shot and seven other people injured at a school in La Loche, Sask., along with two brothers at a residence in the town.
In that case, a 17-year-old boy, who can't be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act, has been charged with first-degree murder and attempted murder.
"It's always worrisome when you have these things happen," Barkman said Thursday. "We are always concerned about safety. We have taken this YouTube threat very seriously."
The video, titled "Wiping Out Kildonan East," includes a male voice rapping over a still picture of the school, insulting students by name and including the line "until you guys hit me back, boom, school dead," followed by the sound of machine gun fire.
Barkman said he has not often encountered threats in his career as a superintendent.
"But there have been different times when it's been a different type of threat. Anytime we go into any type of lockdown or we do a hold-and-secure or high alert, it's for a good reason."
