Bishop Primary School students returned to class Friday after three students vandalized the campus Wednesday night, which forced classes to be canceled Thursday for cleanup.

According to Bishop Police Officer Jaime Curiel, three Bishop CISD students, two from the elementary school, ages 9 and 10, and one from the junior high school, age 13, were apprehended around 9 p.m. when a teacher and her husband went to the school to work after hours and heard loud noises coming from the faculty lounge.

They found one of the students banging a soda machine with a hammer.

“Officer Robert Morales was called in about a possible break-in and I was called in off-duty as well,” Curiel said

“When we arrived we saw that the students destroyed property all over the school with the exception of only a few classrooms,” Curiel said.

After inspecting the area, school officials and officers discovered that at least 10 classrooms were damaged with books and papers all over the floor.

Computers and windows had been broken, and the school’s new security cameras were taken down and destroyed.

Yogurt and milk from the cafeteria had also been splattered all over the area.

Once the students were apprehended, they were questioned and read their rights by Justice of the Peace, Pct 3., Adolfo G. Contreras.

“Two of the juveniles were taken to the Nueces County Juvenile Justice Center in Corpus Christi and the younger one was released to his parents because the detention center does not take anyone under the age of 10,” Curiel said.

Cleanup at Bishop Primary School was in full mode Thursday and was completed as soon as possible so that class could be resumed Friday.

“Very early in the morning around 7:30 a.m. our custodians and maintenance crews began the process of picking up all the debris,” Bishop Primary School Principal Debbie Gonzalez said.

Our maintenance director called in custodians from other Bishop campuses to assist, as well as bus drivers and groundskeepers from the district,” Gonzalez said.

“Teachers were not asked to come in until 10 a.m. and were sent to their classrooms to assess the damage and take an inventory of what was broken in order for it to be replaced as soon as possible,” Gonzalez said.

The juveniles damaged thermostats for the air conditioners, and also shattered windows around the campus, which were replaced within the day.

The carpets were shampooed and everything was back in its place for class Friday.

“Everything was replaced or repaired with the exception of the security cameras, which will take a little longer, “Gonzalez said.

“We want to recognize our maintenance crews and everyone who worked so hard at getting things cleaned up in a timely manner for our students; they did an excellent job,” she said.