On Tuesday Greenwich Police issued a press release about an incident that took place last Friday.
Many parents had been commenting over the weekend on Facebook about the incident at a 5th grade event on Friday, Nov 15 at the Arch Street Teen Center. Early Monday morning police initially said the incident appeared to be internet gossip or chatter, but said they would look into the alleged incident.
On Tuesday afternoon Police said a parent of an elementary school-aged student had contacted the them to report another elementary-age person assaulted her child at a local party.
“The child alleged the other child struck her due to her Jewish faith,” police said. “Several elementary-age students who knew each other played a game during this party. During the gameplay, one of the children was tagged ‘out.’ This student became upset with being called ‘out’ and struck the victim in the face.”
“Several other of the children witnessed the incident. The victim reported that when asked why the student hit her, the other student said it was because of her Jewish faith.”
Currently, the Greenwich Police Department is actively interviewing witnesses and working diligently to gather all relevant information.
“As we still have several interviews, we cannot provide additional comments at this time. However, please be assured that our department is fully committed to thoroughly investigating this incident,” police added. “We take all reports of crime extremely seriously, particularly those that involve harm to individuals and elements of hate. It is important for the community to know that our commitment to addressing hate crimes remains steadfast.”
“We understand the alarm caused by incidents of this nature and their impact on victims and the broader community. Please know that we are doing everything we can, within the bounds of the law, to investigate and address this situation effectively. Your understanding and patience during this ongoing investigation are greatly appreciated.”
The Arch Street Teen Center features a website that says two fifth-grade students were involved in the incident Friday night and that the teen center has a zero-tolerance policy for discrimination in any form.
“Due to the severity of the allegations, we contacted Greenwich Police Dept. Because the police are aware, we cannot make any further comments,” the statement continued.
The statement further suggested anyone with information to reach out to GPD Youth Services Division, and since children are involved, not to speculate and comment about the incident social media.