BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — After Buffalo SVU Detective Richard Hy shared allegations that an incident in February at a Buffalo school was an attempted abduction of two children, an advocate for child safety is organizing a petition drive and a community forum.
On February 11, police were alerted to an assault in progress inside the Dr. Charles R. Drew Science Magnet, located adjacent to the Buffalo Museum of Science. Police said that officers learned that a man had entered the school through a shared door with the museum and approached a young student. Police said an assistant principal intervened, and the man "punched and shoved" her into a wall before fleeing back into the museum. Police said they found the suspect hiding in the museum.
He was identified as 30-year-old Shane Cronin of Lombard, Illinois. He was charged with a felony count of second-degree burglary, misdemeanor counts of third-degree assault and endangering the welfare of a child and a violation of harassment. He was taken to the Erie County Holding Center, where the Sheriff's Office said he allegedly attacked four deputies. He was charged in that incident with four counts each of second-degree assault and obstructing governmental administration.
On the Unsubscribe Podcast, Hy said that there's much to what happened. Hy also shared more of the details in an interview with 7 News. He said that Cronin tried to abduct two children — a boy and a girl — and that the family of the boy wasn't informed until later when the Erie County District Attorney's Office was informed. He also alleged that surveillance video of the incident had been deleted but that someone at the school had recorded that video on their cell phone and handed that over to the authorities.
We took a closer look at the case on Monday. You can watch our report below and read more here.
Kareema Morris of Bury the Violence is also a graduate of the school and said she has many questions about what took place.
“How did this happen? What door did he enter in? Why is there CC footage being deleted? Who has access to that? We need answers," Morris said.
Morris has started a petition calling for the immediate implementation of an improved safety plan and is organizing a forum on Thursday from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at 289 Austin Street.
“So the open forum is going to be for the community members and for the parents who are involved...to get their frustrations out," Morris said. "They can post on Facebook, but that's Facebook. We need them to have something more actionable. This is children's lives. We understand that they make great strides and things have been done on one level, but on another level, this is major for our community. There's no room for this, especially what's going on amongst us with school shootings and things like that.”
Over the weekend, a school district spokesman vehemently denied all of the allegations and released the following statement:
"The Buffalo Public School District is aware of unfortunate and untrue recent allegations circulating in an online video. The district is prepared to vigorously address these untruths. The district has prioritized the safety and security of its students and staff every day. BPS is the second largest district in NYS with some 60 schools, 30,000 students, and 7,000 staff and any transgressions that may happen are handled swiftly with seriousness, integrity, fairness, and empathy. The Buffalo Public Schools maintains a close and professional relationship with the Buffalo Police Department as a means to ensure that safety is a priority."
On Monday, the Buffalo Board of Education held a special meeting and responded to the allegations, saying an independent external investigation will be conducted.
"The Board of Education takes allegations about the well-being of our students seriously," said Board President Dr. Kathy Evans-Brown. "The BOE is initiating an independent external investigation and the results will be shared publicly."
For more information on the forum, go to the Bury the Violence website: www.btvbuffalo.org.
You can watch our report on the special meeting below and read more here.
