Garden memorial stolen from Barrie secondary school

Flowers from a memorial at Innisdale Secondary School in Barrie were stolen last Saturday, according to Barrie police.

Police say between 12:49 and 12:53 a.m., two people dug up and stole several flowers from a flower bed as part of a memorial created by students to honour a former student who had passed away.

"In a four-minute span, a garden planted in memory of a student was dismantled and dug right up. The flowers were totally removed," said Peter Leon with Barrie police services.

The incident went unnoticed until the next day when the school's principal happened to stop by the school.

"It really tore your heart away knowing what the staff and the students did and think of what we really intended the garden for," said Brian MacIsaac, principal of Innisdale Secondary School.

MacIsaac said he was the first to notice the vandalized memorial. He checked the school's video surveillance, which is now in the hands of the school board.

"An SUV came in around 1:00 a.m. in the morning, and you could see the two persons coming out with shovels, and they dug the flowers out of the ground, bagged them up and put them in the vehicle and drove away," MacIsaasc said.

"Why? We have to ask the question, why? And if we can find out who did it, you're darn right; we're going to hold that person accountable. This is a crime, and it's impacting the community because Innisdale Secondary School is a community all on its own," Leon said.

The value of the flowers is estimated at only a few hundred dollars. The flower bed is located just feet from the school's front doors.

MacIsaac said the school plans to replant some flowers in memory of that student. As for the police, they are pleading with anyone who may know anything about this to come forward.