ST. GEORGE — Five St. George schools were secured Friday morning, meaning all exterior doors are locked, following a report that two men allegedly entered a home in the Little Valley area and then fled on foot.
Steve Dunham, communications director for the Washington County School District, told St. George News that three schools, including Little Valley Elementary, Sunrise Ridge Intermediate, both located on South 2350 East Street, and Crimson View Elementary, located on East 2000 South, have been placed on a “secure” status, meaning the exterior doors of the schools are locked and no entry into the school is allowed, while operations within the school continue as normal.
St. George Police Officer Tiffany Mitchell told St. George News that officers are actively investigating a residential burglary in the area of South 2800 East and East 1800 South and said that two additional schools, South Mesa Elementary on South 3300 East and George Washington Academy on South 3000 East also were secured as a precaution.
The school resource officers assigned to each of the schools are aware of the situation and are at the schools now, Dunham said, adding there is one resource officer assigned to both Little Valley Elementary and Sunrise Intermediate – since they are located directly across the street from each another, and the officer is currently going between the two schools.
“The schools are locked and the students are safe and secure, ” Dunham added.
Mitchell said the incident that prompted them to secure the schools was reported shortly after 10:30 a.m., when emergency dispatch received a text from a teenager who said two men were possibly in the home. When officers arrived they encountered two suspicious men running in the area. One of the suspects was caught by police, but the second suspect remains at large.
Police are still searching for the second suspect described as a man, possibly Hispanic, wearing a gray sweatshirt, a lime-green face mask and a black fanny pack, Mitchell said, adding that the Utah Department of Public Safety also launched the Star 9 helicopter to assist in the search by providing aerial support for the ground units.
Police said they do not believe the suspect poses any threat to the public at this time.
As of noon, Dunham told St. George News all schools have been taken off secure status except for Crimson View Elementary.
This is a developing story.
This report is based on statements from court records, police or other responders and may not contain the full scope of findings. Persons arrested or charged are presumed innocent until found guilty in a court of law or as otherwise decided by a trier-of-fact.
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