A Grade 12 pupil at Vuyolwethu Secondary School in Kimberley is facing criminal charges after a firearm was found in his possession at school on Monday.
A GRADE 12 pupil at Vuyolwethu Secondary School in Kimberley is facing criminal charges after a firearm was found in his possession at school on Monday.
According to the Northern Cape MEC for Education, Abraham Vosloo, who paid a visit to the school on Tuesday, the firearm was discovered after a fellow pupil reported the matter.
“The weapon was discovered after a fellow learner reported that the Grade 12 learner had a weapon on him. The principal embarked on a process of searching within the guidelines. Through the search process, they were able to establish that there was indeed a gun. They also discovered that the gun was given to this learner by a learner from St Boniface. The matter was reported to the police,” said Vosloo.
“The gun was found on-person and the gun was not loaded, there was no magazine in the gun. Only the learner from Vuyolwethu has so far been arrested. The police will determine the way forward in relation to the other learner.”
Vosloo added that disciplinary processes will also be instituted against the pupil at the school.
“The disciplinary school processes will unfold, but the matter is also now in the hands of the law enforcement agencies,” he said.
The MEC said they are in communication with the implicated learner from St Boniface.
“The department, through the district and the provincial office, is engaging with both schools and the learners concerned in order to establish the facts around everything,” Vosloo said.
He added that the department will also turn its focus to enhancing security measures at schools.
“Vuyolwethu High School forms part of 86 hot-spot schools in the Province with a high number of vandalism and theft incidents and was allocated seven safety volunteers to address matters related to security. The department is busy reviewing the programme to refine it and to better equip our school safety volunteers to handle incidents of such a nature.
“Our Employee Support Services is currently at the school to provide counselling to educators and learners who have been directly affected by this traumatic experience,” concluded Vosloo.
Police spokesperson Sergeant Timothy Sam said the pupil is facing a charge of illegal possession of a firearm.
“The Kagisho police are investigating a case of illegal possession of a firearm after an 18-year-old learner was arrested at a local school. It is believed that fellow learners reported to the school management that the suspect was in possession of a firearm. A search was executed and the firearm was found in possession of the learner,” Sam confirmed.
