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04-07-2008, 09:58 AM
April 08, 2008
SYDNEY - Five teenagers were in custody late yesterday after allegedly smashing their way into a Sydney high school with baseball bats and machetes, terrifying students and injuring 18, including a teacher who confronted them.
Parents praised the courage of teachers who barricaded their students in classrooms and placed themselves between children and thugs rampaging through Merrylands High, in Sydney's western suburbs.
The motive for what police described as a "brazen attack" remained unclear yesterday, although Detective Inspector Jim Stewart said that revenge was a possibility.
He told Fairfax radio said that they had been given information that the attackers had been looking for someone at the school. The alleged attackers - two 14-year-olds, two 15-year-olds and one aged 16 - are not believed to be students at the school.
Two are from Merrylands and the others from the nearby suburbs of Auburn, Carramar and Seven Hills.
Although violence between students, bullying and attacks on teachers are relatively common in NSW schools, an all-out assault by armed outsiders is rare, but education officials are now considering whether security needs to be tightened.
The attack began as students and teachers started morning assembly. As the armed group arrived, teachers rushed students into classrooms under emergency lockdown arrangements, barricaded doors and called police.
The alleged thugs ran around the school, smashing classroom windows and showering terrified students with broken glass.
A 48-year-old male teacher who tried to stop the rampage was clubbed on the head and required hospital treatment.
One female student was taken to hospital with facial wounds, and Ambulance Service officers assessed 17 others, most suffering lacerations or bruising.
As the alarm went out, police reinforced local units with others from Parramatta, Rosehill and Fairfield.
"Officers attended the scene within minutes, and the fast response by both police and staff is to be commended," Stewart said.
"It beggars belief [the alleged offenders] would attempt this kind of activity against innocent students."
The alleged attackers were arrested at the school without incident.
But the raid terrified staff, students and parents, dozens of whom raced to the school and waited outside for news, some in tears.
One mother told Macquarie Radio said that the armed youths had attacked during morning assembly.
"They just walked right in," she said.
As soon as students were locked into their classrooms, teachers made roll calls to ensure all were inside and safe. Then windows began being smashed.
Teachers ordered students under their desks, and stood guard at the doors, barricading them.
"This is really way above the call of duty, which is really good," the mother said. "They showed the parents that they put their lives on the line for the kids."
The NSW Education Department said it would review security with the police. Regional director Tom Murie told Macquarie Radio that the attack had started without warning and that the principal, staff and students had acted in an outstanding manner.
Students of Merrylands High School blamed the emergence of young self-styled suburban gangs in Sydney's west for the attack.
Members of a group calling itself Gee40, made up of youths from Merrylands and Guildford, carried out the brazen, violent rampage, pupils told The Daily Telegraph.
Police said they were aware of the existence of Gee40 as one of a number of so-called gangs in Sydney's west, but they were still investigating whether there was any link.
However, it is believed the attack may have had a more personal motivation, with the five attending the school to seek out a male student over a grudge about a girl.
Gee-40 emulates American "gangsta" rappers and boast about their run-ins with
police on the internet.
Gang talk dominates their web chatter as members list their crimes and talk up their brushes with the law.
On one website dedicated to the suburban gangs of Sydney, Guildford Gee-40 is listed. The site features numerous photos of youths of Pacific Islander background brandishing weapons.
The site is also peppered with photos of graffiti with the words "Gee-40" scrawled on a wall.
The website, entitled "Juvenile Justice and the Gangs of NSW", claims to feature "juvinile (sic) gangs ripping through Sydney".
One blogger, Brett, says: "We can f... with da law about 1 in 100 things i do i get charged for so f... u".
Another writer, calling himself I luv Carly, says: "F... da cops" and lists his crimes as assault, grievous bodily harm, attempted murder, break and enter, possession of an illegal weapon, and armed robbery.
"Might be doing 6 to 18 months," he said.
Gee40 is one of a number of juvenile "gangs" that inhabit parts of Sydney's west.
There are gangs that say they hail from suburbs including Guildford, Merrylands, Parramatta, Auburn and Granville.
They form largely along ethnic backgrounds and congregate on neighbourhood streets as they flirt with the law - carrying out offences such as street robberies.
However, police claim they are not organised gangs. Rather, the groups give themselves names to make themselves feel important.
SYDNEY - Five teenagers were in custody late yesterday after allegedly smashing their way into a Sydney high school with baseball bats and machetes, terrifying students and injuring 18, including a teacher who confronted them.
Parents praised the courage of teachers who barricaded their students in classrooms and placed themselves between children and thugs rampaging through Merrylands High, in Sydney's western suburbs.
The motive for what police described as a "brazen attack" remained unclear yesterday, although Detective Inspector Jim Stewart said that revenge was a possibility.
He told Fairfax radio said that they had been given information that the attackers had been looking for someone at the school. The alleged attackers - two 14-year-olds, two 15-year-olds and one aged 16 - are not believed to be students at the school.
Two are from Merrylands and the others from the nearby suburbs of Auburn, Carramar and Seven Hills.
Although violence between students, bullying and attacks on teachers are relatively common in NSW schools, an all-out assault by armed outsiders is rare, but education officials are now considering whether security needs to be tightened.
The attack began as students and teachers started morning assembly. As the armed group arrived, teachers rushed students into classrooms under emergency lockdown arrangements, barricaded doors and called police.
The alleged thugs ran around the school, smashing classroom windows and showering terrified students with broken glass.
A 48-year-old male teacher who tried to stop the rampage was clubbed on the head and required hospital treatment.
One female student was taken to hospital with facial wounds, and Ambulance Service officers assessed 17 others, most suffering lacerations or bruising.
As the alarm went out, police reinforced local units with others from Parramatta, Rosehill and Fairfield.
"Officers attended the scene within minutes, and the fast response by both police and staff is to be commended," Stewart said.
"It beggars belief [the alleged offenders] would attempt this kind of activity against innocent students."
The alleged attackers were arrested at the school without incident.
But the raid terrified staff, students and parents, dozens of whom raced to the school and waited outside for news, some in tears.
One mother told Macquarie Radio said that the armed youths had attacked during morning assembly.
"They just walked right in," she said.
As soon as students were locked into their classrooms, teachers made roll calls to ensure all were inside and safe. Then windows began being smashed.
Teachers ordered students under their desks, and stood guard at the doors, barricading them.
"This is really way above the call of duty, which is really good," the mother said. "They showed the parents that they put their lives on the line for the kids."
The NSW Education Department said it would review security with the police. Regional director Tom Murie told Macquarie Radio that the attack had started without warning and that the principal, staff and students had acted in an outstanding manner.
Students of Merrylands High School blamed the emergence of young self-styled suburban gangs in Sydney's west for the attack.
Members of a group calling itself Gee40, made up of youths from Merrylands and Guildford, carried out the brazen, violent rampage, pupils told The Daily Telegraph.
Police said they were aware of the existence of Gee40 as one of a number of so-called gangs in Sydney's west, but they were still investigating whether there was any link.
However, it is believed the attack may have had a more personal motivation, with the five attending the school to seek out a male student over a grudge about a girl.
Gee-40 emulates American "gangsta" rappers and boast about their run-ins with
police on the internet.
Gang talk dominates their web chatter as members list their crimes and talk up their brushes with the law.
On one website dedicated to the suburban gangs of Sydney, Guildford Gee-40 is listed. The site features numerous photos of youths of Pacific Islander background brandishing weapons.
The site is also peppered with photos of graffiti with the words "Gee-40" scrawled on a wall.
The website, entitled "Juvenile Justice and the Gangs of NSW", claims to feature "juvinile (sic) gangs ripping through Sydney".
One blogger, Brett, says: "We can f... with da law about 1 in 100 things i do i get charged for so f... u".
Another writer, calling himself I luv Carly, says: "F... da cops" and lists his crimes as assault, grievous bodily harm, attempted murder, break and enter, possession of an illegal weapon, and armed robbery.
"Might be doing 6 to 18 months," he said.
Gee40 is one of a number of juvenile "gangs" that inhabit parts of Sydney's west.
There are gangs that say they hail from suburbs including Guildford, Merrylands, Parramatta, Auburn and Granville.
They form largely along ethnic backgrounds and congregate on neighbourhood streets as they flirt with the law - carrying out offences such as street robberies.
However, police claim they are not organised gangs. Rather, the groups give themselves names to make themselves feel important.