Fake gun at centre of Nagle Catholic College probe

Police say a 16-year-oldstudent at a top Geraldton school has been “open and honest” with investigators after bringing a weapon onto school grounds last Friday. Detective Senior Sergeant Bruce McDonald said the young girl involved in the incident at Nagle Catholic College had made a “terrible mistake” and had co-operated completely, when spoken to by police. “This was an isolated and unfortunate incident,” he said. “There were no threats, the gun wasn’t pointed at anyone and no one was injured. Police are working with her and her family and she feels terrible about this.” He stressed the weapon she brought was “not a real gun” and said the student was given a juvenile caution over the incident. It was revealed yesterday the college had referred the matter to WA Police after staff at the school became aware of the incident on Sunday. Yesterday, principal Michael Williams wrote to the parents and guardians in response to information being shared online that may have “reasonably raised concerns”. “The college has worked with the affected families and relevant authorities in relation to the matter.” Parents and guardians of students have expressed outrage at the school for not informing them of a “potential threat” to safety at the school sooner than six days after the incident. “Maybe the school could have provided a little more info than the vague email sent out yesterday,” one mother wrote online. “Very disappointed we had to learn from the newspapers… the school could have been a bit more open about potential threat to student’s safety,” another said. A spokesperson for Nagle Catholic College declined to comment when asked if there should have been clearer communication to the school community.