

The Canadian Press





TORONTO - More than 2,000 Toronto high school students headed home late Thursday after gunshots rang out in a stairwell and police descended on the building.

No one was injured in the incident that put Central Technical School under lockdown for about 3 1/2 hours.

Three young people were in custody Thursday night, but a police spokeswoman said she had no word on whether charges had been laid.

Two possible suspects were arrested at the school and the spokeswoman said a third was picked up by officers on Thursday evening.

Students were released classroom by classroom after emergency task force personnel swept the school in search of a weapon and suspects.

Const. Tony Vella said a single shot was heard coming from a stairwell and a shell casing was found.

Vella said police responded just after 1 p.m. after witnesses reported hearing several shots ring out and saw a number of suspects leaving the area.

Several roads in the Bathurst and Bloor streets area were closed while police investigated.

On Twitter, police were asking any students with information on the incident to contact investigators anonymously.