A beloved special education institution in Antigua and Barbuda is issuing a desperate plea for public assistance, after months of repeated break-ins, thefts and intentional vandalism have left the school community shaken and desperate for intervention.
Victory Centre School, which serves children with special educational needs, has faced an unrelenting string of criminal incidents over the past year that have undermined every effort the school has made to rebuild and protect its learning environment. The trouble began last year, when thieves stole critical daily essentials including an air conditioning unit and a microwave from the campus. Generous public donations and the school’s limited operating savings allowed administrators to replace the stolen goods — but within just seven days, the replacement items were also stolen by intruders.
Following these losses, stakeholders including local fundraising groups, parents of enrolled students, the Government of Antigua and Barbuda, and private sector businesses stepped forward to support the school. With their collective backing, Victory Centre upgraded its campus security, installing closed-circuit cameras and reinforced burglar bars across vulnerable access points. Despite these costly upgrades, criminal incursions onto the campus have continued.
Most recently, the senseless damage has struck a project that held particular meaning for Victory Centre’s students. Just yesterday, the school celebrated the formal handover of its new student-led hydroponics initiative, a milestone months in the making that gave learners the chance to build hands-on skills growing fresh produce. For the students involved, the project represented far more than growing vegetables: it was an opportunity to build confidence, practice collaborative work, and develop practical independent living skills, with plans to use proceeds from harvested crops to fund group social enrichment activities.
But in a devastating turn of events, security cameras at the school captured an intruder — believed to be linked to the earlier break-in and theft incidents — on campus early this morning, shortly after 6 a.m. Footage shows the individual pulling up fully grown but still premature lettuce plants, destroying the crop before students could harvest it.
Administrators at the school say this latest act has been particularly disheartening for the school community. “To an outside person, these small items and young crops may seem trivial, but to our students, they are everything,” the appeal notes. “They represent the chance to build new practical skills, grow confidence, work toward independence, and experience the joy of earning their own opportunities. Our students were so excited to harvest their hard work, and now that moment has been stolen from them.”
In the appeal, school leaders first issued a direct call to the people responsible for the string of incidents: “Please stop these attacks and leave our school and our students alone.” They are now turning to the wider public for help to put an end to the damage.
Authorities have released security footage showing the suspected individual, who has been seen on campus multiple times occasionally accompanied by other unknown people. Anyone who recognizes the person in the recordings, or who has any information that could help police with their ongoing investigation, is asked to contact their nearest local police station immediately. School leaders are urging members of the public not to confront any suspected intruders directly, to avoid putting themselves at risk.
Victory Centre leaders are also asking community members to share the appeal widely to spread awareness of the school’s crisis. “Victory Centre is far more than just a school,” the appeal emphasizes. “It is a safe space for learning, inclusion, personal growth, and life-changing opportunity for our special needs students. They deserve to learn in a safe, secure environment, and they deserve better than this repeated harm.”
The school extended its gratitude to all the individuals and organizations that have supported the community through donations, fundraising, advocacy, and acts of kindness to date. “Your support means more than any words can say,” administrators said. “Now we are asking for one more push: help us protect our students, help us end these incidents, and help us protect their future.”