BARNEGAT – Superintendent of Schools Dr. Brian Latwis addressed false rumors, claiming that Horbelt students were placed in danger because of unknown intruders.
According to Latwis, two twelve-year-old students entered the front doors of the Horbelt School at the regular school arrival time on October 5th.
One of the two boys is a Horbelt sixth grader – out of school on a two-day suspension for an unrelated incident. The other is a seventh grader at the Brackman Middle School.
“These were two students who would fit in with everybody else in the Five/Six building,” said Latwis. “They didn’t come in by bus, and just walked in when all of the other 400 kids were entering the building.”
Both students were wearing hoodies and not easily recognizable. They were asked to remove their hoods just before they slid into one of the school bathrooms on the first floor. They subsequently headed to the second-floor rear bathroom, where they hid together in one of the stalls.
As part of his systematic checks, Horbelt’s armed security guard came across the students and immediately realized there was a problem.
“The armed security guard prevented the boys from leaving the bathroom,” Latwis said. “We obviously didn’t know what their intent was for hiding there and the guard kept them under his supervision.”
The students were ultimately escorted to the main office. No weapons of any kind were found on either of the two students. The Barnegat Police Department was called because neither boy belonged on the premises and the district planned to press trespassing charges against them.
Neither student had a book bag with them and when their mothers were called to pick them up, both moms said they had no idea their child had left their homes.
A review of video surveillance showed both students walking from the rear wooded area outside the Horbelt School from the building’s west side.
“At no point did the administration feel the students at Horbelt were in jeopardy,” Latwis emphasized. “We value the safety of our students and staff.”
