Oops!

30 students at Baratani Junior Secondary School were treated and discharged at Otse Clinic last Friday after a pupil mistakenly went wild with pepper spray in the classroom.

Confirming the unusual episode, Woodhall Police said it seems the device, a 60ml bottle labelled USA Police Tear Gas Injector, was smuggled into class by a 13-year-old Form 2 student.

The substance reportedly belonged to the teen’s uncle, a former security officer who carried the spray with him when on patrol.

The youngster is said to have snuck the spray into his bag when he left for school that morning.

However, he arrived late and, before going for questioning over his late-coming, handed his bag to a friend, with strict instructions not to open it.

It seems curiosity got the better of his mate, who decided to check what was inside. He duly found the tear gas and, apparently thinking it was a fancy perfume, doused the classroom with liberal amounts of the pepper spray.

The students, who got the shock of their lives, soon started complaining of itching nose, headache and dizziness and the matter was reported to the police.

“Since he is a minor we are still on investigations which we shall also engage the teachers. We will also need to find out if there was any intention to harm or not. Even the said uncle is still away in Maun, we haven’t yet talked to him on how the boy ended up being found in possession of the spray,” revealed Woodhall Station Commander, Daniel Katse.