Arrests made after attack on two girls during lunch break at Sinaloa Middle School in Novato

NOVATO, Calif. (KGO) – According to parents, several arrests were made following an attack on Sinaloa Middle School in Novato.

Several girls between the ages of 12 and 14 were involved in the attack.

The video shows one of two students who were attacked during lunch at Sinaloa Middle School in Novato last Friday; the video is now part of the police investigation.

“I think she was just trying to defend herself and knock away blocks and stuff, but the other three were on top of her and chasing her relentlessly,” said Christina Carroll, a mother herself.

“They told me it was brutal. They told me there were a lot of people filming. They told me it happened very quickly,” said Brittany O’Sullivan, also a mother.

Angry parents crowded the middle school library Tuesday night looking for answers, with school officials calling it a horrific attack during the meeting.

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According to the police report, the school administration learned of an impending attack on Thursday, but reacted immediately and it did not happen.

On Friday, two additional private security guards and a number of other administrative employees were deployed. However, the two security officers responsible for the entire school district were not on campus.

“So the school district was informed, but the police were not?” asked ABC 7 News reporter JR Stone.

“Correct,” replied Captain Sasha D’Amico of the Novato Police Department. D’Amico continued, “So if we were requested to do this as part of our agreement with the school district, we definitely would have been involved, but to do that, we need a request and information to be able to respond.”

Arrests have been made and police believe there may be more arrests. They have no answer as to why this attack took place.

Melanie Sanchez tells us her daughter was arrested on Tuesday after she was caught on video throwing punches. She claims her daughter and others were bullied by the girls attacked in the video.

“They are told they are fat, they are ugly, they have ugly hair, and they get balls thrown at them every day at school,” says Sanchez.

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She says her daughter regrets the attack but freaked out and did nothing, even after speaking to her counselor. She is heartbroken that her daughter was immediately taken into custody.

“Hugging my daughter goodbye, even though she had never been away from me before. That was the trigger. When they took her away today. And I can imagine how the other parents felt when they came back from work and their daughter was gone,” Sanchez said, tears streaming down her face.

Parents say they want all these problems to be addressed in the future.

“Bullying has become a huge problem and I hope we can get it under control this year, especially for those children who don’t feel safe,” says Pam Laidley, a mother.

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The district says it is paying teachers and staff extra money to open their classrooms at lunchtime so students can come in and feel safe.

Novato police expect to have more information on next steps on Wednesday.

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