Teenagers arrested after college locked down

Five teenagers have been arrested after a college in a city centre was placed on lockdown.

West Midlands Police said armed officers were sent to Swanswell Street, Coventry, at about 12:40 BST on Tuesday after reports that a firearm was seen.

An imitation firearm was found by officers and two 18-year-old men, two boys aged 17 and a 16-year-old boy were arrested on suspicion of possession of a firearm and remain in custody.

Gemma Knott, vice principal at Coventry College, said the site carried out its lockdown procedures following the incident outside the Swan Delights Supermarket and Café, located opposite the campus.

Stacey Cook told the BBC that her stepdaughter, who attends the college, was "locked down into a classroom and she didn't know what was going on".

"She was very scared and shaken," she added.

"My stepdaughter found out what happened on Snapchat and the college had not told us anything about what had happened."

Knott told the BBC: "The safety of our students, staff and visitors is always our foremost concern.

"Once we became aware of the situation, we acted quickly in accordance with our procedures and remained in close contact with the emergency services throughout as a precautionary measure."

Knott added that the lockdown was "quickly lifted" and colleagues along with students responded in a "calm and professional manner".

The campus has returned to normal operations.

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