ICE agents arrival causes students to flee from Lindenwold bus stop
The ICE investigation took place at Woodland Village Apartments.
Students waiting for a school bus began running after ICE agents arrived at their Camden County apartment complex Thursday morning.
Home security video from the Lindenwold apartment complex shows several students yelling "ICE, ICE" as they ran from the bus stop near Woodland Village Apartments in Lindenwold.
In a letter to the school community, the Lindenwold School District said the students were fourth and fifth-graders waiting at their assigned bus stop when federal immigration enforcement activity took place.
"The presence of multiple enforcement vehicles caused significant fear and confusion, and several students ran from the bus stop," the district's post on social media stated.
According to school officials, once the bus driver arrived and saw the kids running, he began to circle back to pick up and transport as many kids to school as possible.
"I would like to sincerely thank him for caring for our children and putting their safety first," the school district posted on Facebook.
Officials said in the post that when students arrived at school following the incident, "many children were understandably upset and emotional." The district also brought in bilingual counselors to School 5 to support the staff and students.
The district said all of the students are safe and they stressed that there were no ICE agents at the Lindenwold School District. Officials will also continue to monitor buses as students get on and off.
"Our students deserve to feel safe while waiting for their school bus and while attending school each day," the post states. "Please know that we are here to support your children and your family."
News 12 has reached out to the Department of Homeland Security and ICE for statements and we are awaiting their replies.
