Schools missing parents for unknown man, but ‘no cause for concern yet’
Primary school De Horizon in Osdorp spoke in a message from parents of an incident around their own schoolyard, in which an unknown man allegedly spoke to three boys from group 8. He would have touched one boy’s long hair, asked if he was a girl and offered to go get a milkshake. The students have run away.
The 7th Montessori School at Rembrandtpark also reports suspicious situations to parents. Both schools advised parents to pay extra attention and reported that there had been contact with the police.
‘Suspicious situations’
Oeike Verheijen of Stichting Westelijke Tuinsteden, the umbrella organization that both primary schools fall under, says that some schools certainly have children about ‘suspicious situations’, because stories were circulating among parents.
According to Verheijen, an investigation has been carried out in response to the reports. “After consultation with several parties, including the police, we can conclude that no incidents have taken place and that there is no (more) discussion of suspicious situations.”
A statement from the police says that the incident has been investigated by De Horizon, but that there is no cause for concern. “That investigation has led to nothing.”
Hyped
One story that makes the rounds disappear, says the police spokesman. In Osdorp, a boy is said to have been spoken to by a man in the schoolyard of yet another primary school and walked with him until he was discovered on Osdorpplein. “Camera images showed that the boy did walk to Osdorpplein, but no adult was present at any time. He was just with his friends. He made it into a story,” the statement said.
Police have been in contact with many schools due to the panic created, but suspect the story is “hyped”. “There is very little going on. At the same time, the warning is not bad, it puts everyone on their toes again. Parents following their children in remembering never to meet and go with strangers is not wrong. But at the moment it is not the case that we are diligently looking for child molesters.”
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