MN High School Senior Prank Caused Up To $25K In Damage, Police Say

ALBERT LEA, MN — Police in Albert Lea say they have a good idea of who was behind a senior prank that did an estimated $10,000 to $25,000 in damage to the city's high school earlier this week.

In an update Friday, the Albert Lea Police Department said investigators, working alongside Albert Lea Area Schools administrators and staff, have interviewed more than 30 students about the vandalism discovered at Albert Lea High School on Sept. 21.

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Those interviews have given police and school staff a clear picture of what happened and who is believed to be involved, the department said.

The investigation remains open, and police are working with the Freeborn County Attorney's Office on possible criminal charges.

The case began shortly after midnight Monday, when an officer patrolling near the school noticed a door had been propped open. Officers searched the building but found no one.

In a news release earlier this week, police said furniture inside had been overturned and toilet paper and baby oil were strewn throughout the school, while the outside had been spray-painted, egged and hit with paintballs.

Superintendent Steve Heil told the Albert Lea Tribune that administrators had identified 35 to 40 students as of Monday afternoon who could face discipline, all of them upperclassmen and most of them seniors.

According to Heil, a student with a key let the group in just before 11 p.m. Sunday, a couple of students then ran to other doors to let the rest inside, and the group stayed until about 11:45 p.m. Heil said he could not say how the student got the key or whose it was.

Heil told KIMT the district has reviewed video footage to identify those involved, and that discipline could range from out-of-school suspensions to Minnesota State High School League code of conduct violations, with decisions made alongside the school board.

He said he could not say whether any seniors would be kept from walking at graduation, and added that incidents like this have been getting worse in Albert Lea in recent years.

The district is still moving ahead with homecoming events, including a parade and tailgate Friday, so the rest of the student body is not punished.

The timing stung, with the district in the middle of its 100th annual homecoming week. Heil told KAAL that the area in front of the school's alumni wall likely suffered permanent damage and that some plaques will need to be replaced.

The high school switched to e-learning Monday while more than 50 staff members, the administrative and custodial teams and a local business spent the day cleaning the inside and power-washing the exterior, Heil told FOX 9.

Classes resumed in person Tuesday.

Anyone with information is asked to contact School Resource Officer Adam Conn through the high school's main office at (507) 379-5340 or by email at aconn@ci.albertlea.mn.us.