Unknown man tried to enter Fresno elementary school campus by cutting a hole in a fence
An unknown man cut a hole in the fence of Figarden Elementary School in northwest Fresno on Thursday morning to try to enter the campus.
Fresno Police Sgt. Diana Trueba Vega said the incident is being investigated as vandalism. Vega said the unknown male cut the north fence to the school around 7:40 a.m.
“When he noticed that students and staff were on scene he turned around and walked away,” Vega said. “He did not speak to anyone, no threats were made.”
Vega said the school and Fresno Unified School District are aware of what happened and are cooperating with Fresno police in their investigation.
Figarden Elementary notified parents about what happened on Thursday morning via emails and automated phone calls.
The emailed message from school Principal Cari Lopez to parents said that “an individual on a bike tried to gain access to campus by cutting a hole in the fence on the backside of the school” right before classes began.
“I want to assure you that everyone was safe and continues to be safe,” the email continued. “This person was never in proximity of our students and didn’t interact with them or the adults.
“Adult supervision was present when the incident took place, which allowed us to notify the Fresno Police Department immediately.”
However, Fresno Police Officer Felipe Uribe said police records show officers received a call for service at 8:45 a.m. – more than an hour after the incident – and that an officer was dispatched at 8:50 a.m., as “this was a lower priority call (misdemeanor vandalism).”
Uribe said it’s unknown how the fence was cut by the suspect, described as a white adult male of an unknown age.
One parent of a Figarden Elementary School student, who asked not to be identified for fear of repercussions from the school, said they were told by school staff that the suspect was carrying a duffel bag and backpack, did not appear to be homeless, and was scared off by some school staff members.
Uribe said the police report doesn’t note a duffel bag or backpack on the suspect, and that he didn’t immediately have additional details on Friday afternoon about who police interviewed.
The elementary school was not locked down on Thursday as the hole in the fence was being repaired – although school staff reportedly watched the hole be repaired. A school open house event – the first since the COVID-19 pandemic began – went on as planned that evening, reportedly with a commitment from police to provide extra patrols. Uribe said he had no way to confirm there were extra patrols there.
Fresno Unified response
Fresno Unified didn’t immediately respond to some questions from The Bee.
“Everyone is in meetings and won’t be able to respond to your request until Tuesday. Thank you for understanding and have a restful weekend,” said a secretary for Fresno Unified spokesperson Nikki Henry via Henry’s email around noon Friday.
Henry responded later that afternoon, after The Bee spoke with Fresno Unified Trustee Terry Slatic, who shared concerns about the district’s response to the incident.
“We can’t speculate to the individual’s intentions,” Henry wrote, “but with an immediate departure without incident, we have no reason to believe the individual had intentions to harm anyone. The school was not locked down as there was no danger, the individual did not come onto campus, and this happened before classes ever began.”
The concerned anonymous parent said there were many students on campus at that time, however, awaiting the start of class.
Henry said Figarden staff first notified Fresno Unified’s safety department to report the incident and get guidance, and that the school does not have a campus safety assistant at its site.
Safety concerns
Some parents took their children out of school temporarily due to safety concerns.
“Hearing something like this right after what happened in Texas ... it’s scary,” the anonymous parent said.
That parent has serious concerns about why the suspect would have cut the fence near classrooms to try and enter the campus when a gate was open, “There could be nothing but ill intent.”
Trustee Slatic said he has received phone calls from concerned parents about the incident. He’s also seeking more information about what happened. Slatic said the school doesn’t have security camera footage of that section of damaged fence.
Prior to Henry’s response, Slatic said he thinks it’s “ridiculous and counterproductive” for FUSD to not immediately respond to all questions and concerns, and “to literally stonewall the crap out of anything that they find, internally, to be showing themselves unfavorably.”
Slatic added that only 15 of Fresno Unified’s 70-plus elementary schools have campus assistants, sometimes called campus security or campus safety assistants, although they can’t carry weapons.
On Friday morning, Central East High School in Fresno temporarily halted school activities after fireworks were lit in a bathroom.
In a news release about that incident, Central Unified School District shared an online article titled “Talking to Children About Violence: Tips for Parents and Teachers,” from the National Association of School Psychologists.
