Former student trespasses at Elkins HS, prompting school to 'hold' students through class periods

MISSOURI CITY, Texas (KTRK) -- As students filed out of Elkins High School Thursday afternoon, few had any idea that the so-called "hold" in their classes just a few hours earlier was caused by a trespasser that sent teachers and staff into action.

"We were in third period," Elkins junior Nia Binoy said. "They came on the announcements. They were like, 'Hey, we can't release out of third period until further notice.' We were just waiting, and they came on 20 minutes later saying the situation was resolved and the bells would resume as usual."

Binoy didn't know at the time that a former student, someone who graduated last year, had made his way inside the school.

Sources say he was in the hallways and recognized by some students and teachers before administrators realized he was not authorized to be on campus.

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"We just stayed in our classroom, and we just stayed there until they found the person," Freshman Ripa Vellapally said. "We just knew it was a lockdown."

Fort Bend ISD officials insisted that the event was not a "lockdown" but rather a "hold." The district sent the following statement after chastising Eyewitness News for a "slow news day."

"A staff member spotted a former student in Elkins High School today, and out of an abundance of caution, school leaders notified their FBISD on-campus police officer. In keeping with procedures, the school went into a hold (not a lockdown). During this time, students were briefly held in their classes while police and staff quickly located the trespasser who was arrested. The hold was lifted, and the campus resumed normal operations."

District officials are not releasing the name of the suspect who was arrested and charged, even though multiple students have identified him as a 19-year-old man.

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Students, although, seemed to shrug off the event as no big deal.

"It wasn't that weird considering they tacked on the word 'drill' at the end of it, and so we just assumed it was a medical emergency drill or something like that," Binoy said.

Though, this instance was not a drill.

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