During the winter break, video cameras were found in the ceiling of six handicapped toilets at Hadsell High School Secondary School, Stockmarkens.
On the school’s website, it was reported that the cameras had been removed, and the matter was reported to the police.
It’s unclear how long the cameras may have been in the bathrooms, but a police investigation will hopefully provide an answer to that.
It may have been there over time
Acting District Director for Education and Competence Geir Hareid Hansen points out that this can be a stressful experience for pupils at school and so will protect them as much as possible.
Most of our students are young, have little experience in the media, and have a lot of interest. Thus, I hope they will be shown interest, and not contacted directly, Hansen urges.
A well-camouflaged video camera was found by the operations staff at the school on Thursday last week. The entire study site was searched for more cameras. In total, six identical cameras were found, all in malfunctioning toilets in Blocks B and C of Stokmarknes.
– They were so well hidden that they might have been there for quite some time. That is why great work is now being done at the school to take care of all the students, staff and other visitors and tenants who may have visited these toilets recently, he says. The case was reported to the police earlier today and the school is assisting the police in the investigation. This means that there is little other information that Nordland County Council can provide as of today. Hansen says questions about the investigation should be directed to the police.
The Melbu study site was also searched, without corresponding results.
Check out other schools
On Monday and Tuesday, Nordland County Council will visit all school buildings in the county to look for similar cameras.
“We have no reason to believe that there will be similar cases in any other schools, but we are not willing to take that risk, so now we are going through all the places to make sure this hasn’t happened anywhere else either,” says Hansen.
The school has formed a team that can respond to inquiries by email, telephone and face to face. In addition, the School Health Service and the Company Health Service are available to answer questions and speak to both students and staff who may need it.
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