LAKE ELSINORE (CNS) - Parents are demanding more security at Lake Elsinore schools, as Riverside County sheriff's officials said today that a 15- year-old boy arrested for allegedly committing a lewd act on a child had been in the parking lot of the same school on two other occasions.
Deputies from the Riverside County Sheriff's Department's Lake Elsinore station responded at 11:30 a.m. Monday to Lakeland Village Elementary School in the 18000 block of Grand Avenue regarding the boy being seen on campus, Sgt. Wilfredo Collazo said.
Authorities said the boy, who is not a student at the school, entered the campus and allegedly committed a lewd act on a child, then fled the campus on foot. Upon their arrival, deputies located the suspect and arrested him.
The campus was placed on lockdown by school administrators out of an abundance of caution for the students until the suspect was caught.
During the course of their investigation, deputies learned there could be additional victims who are students at the school, Collazo said.
``On two other occasions in late August 2022, we are aware that this same suspect had been in the parking lot of the same school,'' the sheriff's department said in a statement provided to City News Service on Saturday.
``On both occasions deputies found the juvenile walking around in the parking lot that is open to the public. There was no criminal act committed on either occasion. We are not aware of any other circumstance in which the suspect made it onto the campus behind the gates in violation of any criminal law.''
On Friday night, a group of concerned parents held a demonstration outside the school district headquarters, calling for some administrators to be fired.
``This has happened several times that people have been able to get on this campus and they don't know who they are and they go to the restrooms,'' parent Stephanie Bingham told CBS2.
The LEUSD Superintendent's Office issued a statement that read: ``As an educator and a parent, I know that we expect our children to be safe while at school, always.
``Our safe place was compromised and we empathize with our students and staff who experienced this traumatic event. We remain committed to evaluating our safety protocols and soon our district will participate in an independent security consultant audit to assist us as we continue to look for ways to improve our layered security approach.''
Anyone with information about the investigation was asked to call the Lake Elsinore station at 951-245-3300 or sheriff's dispatch at 951-776-1099.
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