A disturbing set of videos have been making the rounds in Canton, Massachusetts, allegedly showing high school students damaging a home and kicking what appears to be a dead rabbit, according to school officials.
School officials and the police are now looking into the videos, which were taken before Thanksgiving.
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“This was an extremely disheartening situation. It’s unfortunate that the irresponsible behavior of these students has rippled through our school and our community," said Derek Folan, superintendent of Canton Public Schools.
At a Canton School Committee meeting Thursday night, Folan addressed what he called an out-of-school event involving students at the high school.
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“We will address any new evidence and information if it comes forward and we will investigate accordingly," he told the crowd.
The stark warning comes as the graphic videos surfaced across social media, allegedly involving students.
They show the juveniles kicking through walls in someone's home, and then what appears to be a dead rabbit.
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Earlier this week at a Canton Select Board meeting there was outrage and concern.
“We learned that Canton juniors and seniors out drinking and partying, deliberately caused significant damage to a newly built home of a fellow classmate," one resident said.
In public comment some residents expressed that they were disturbed by how the animal in the video was treated.
“I would like to ask for a moment of silence for the helpless rabbit that was brutally killed for fun," resident Brenda Sweeney said.
“I don’t know about others listening right now but I cried when I watched it and I know I’m not alone," Susan Carlson added.
Canton police are now investigating, saying in part:
“…we have arranged for other investigators to come in to assist us with those perceived conflict of interest interviews and coordinating all of the youths with parents and outside investigators has been difficult.”
Police did not specify what those conflicts of interest are but it does appear that some of the students are related to officials in town.
It has been a tumultuous time for the town of Canton, the community at the center of the controversial Karen Read case. Read is accused of hitting and killing her police officer boyfriend outside a home in Canton in January 2022, but her defense claims she is the victim of an elaborate police cover-up. Those allegations of police misconduct, paired with accusations from Read's defense about high-profile residents in town and intense media scrutiny, have led to high tensions and an audit of the police department.
NBC10 Boston reached out to the owner of the home about what happened, but did not hear back.
