A video circulating on social media allegedly shows the terrifying moment a boy pulls a machete from his trousers and wildly swipes the blade at a student.
The unverified footage shows two males in a heated row inside a busy student common room.
Another pupil is seen trying to grab the arm of one of the boys and shouting ‘no, no’ before he then draws a huge blade from his jogging bottoms and thrashes it against the surface of a table tennis table.
A boy then scurries backward as the machete-wielding pupil circles around the table and swipes at him again, with other students watching on.
He then tucks the blade back into his waistband before marching out of the student hall.
The 39-second clip has been posted on X by Turning Point UK – an offshoot of the American student pressure group set up by the assassinated Charlie Kirk.
The group claims the footage is of yesterday’s incident that forced Royal Leamington Spa College, in Warwickshire, to go into lockdown.
Warwickshire Police would not confirm the authenticity of the video to the Daily Mail, but said yesterday it was ‘desperate’ to get hold of footage that had been posted on social media.
In a statement released yesterday afternoon, the force said it had arrested a 17-year-old boy at his home address.
Two other boys were arrested outside the college in a separate incident on suspicion of violent disorder while officers were at the scene.
Chief Inspector Simon Ryan, policing commander for South Warwickshire, described yesterday’s incident as ‘terrifying’.
He said officers had ‘taken prompt action to detain a suspect’.
‘A 17-year-old boy was arrested a short time later at his home following enquiries at the scene. He has been arrested on suspicion of attempt to wounding and possession of an offensive weapon.
‘We are carrying out searches at his home as part of the investigation.
‘Nobody was injured. At this time, we believe the incident was part of a disagreement and we don’t believe there is any further risk to the community.
‘We are aware of footage of the incident on social media, and this is forming part of our enquiries. I’d encourage anyone with video footage to contact police.
‘We will maintain a police presence at the school, and I’d urge anyone with concerns to speak to one of our officers.’
Royal Leamington Spa College said it went into lockdown following advice from police while officers carried out their investigation.
‘We’d like to thank students, staff and parents for their patience and cooperation during this time,’ the college said in a message posted on its website.
‘The safety and wellbeing of our students and staff are of utmost importance to us, and we will continue to work with external agencies to ensure our campuses are a safe place to study and work.’
The Daily Mail has contacted the college for further comment.
