Graduation pranks at Nanaimo high schools proved costly over the weekend.
Students and staff at Nanaimo District Secondary School had difficulty attending the last official day of classes Friday when they arrived to find the locks of every main door to the school except for one had been glued shut.
Toilet paper was also stuck to the glued doors and tossed in trees around the school grounds. The cost for repairs and lock replacement is estimated at $800.
Const. Gary O'Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesman, said some kind of epoxy glue was likely used on the locks and it would have taken several people to pull off the prank.
Classes were not interrupted, but the doors had to be propped open to allow access in and out of the building.
It took two locksmiths most of the day to replace the damaged locks.
Police estimate the culprits waited until after custodians left the school at about 11:30 p.m. Thursday before they moved in to vandalize the building.
The play field at Dover Bay Secondary School was also targeted late Thursday, possibly by the same group of vandals.
Someone cut "NDSS 2011" into the grass. The message was about seven metres long by two meters tall.
Police have no cost estimate for repairs to the field.
Witnesses told Mounties at least seven teenagers were seen on the fields around 11 p.m. Some were seen wearing black wigs and at least one was wearing a hockey uniform.
Anyone with information about either incident is asked to call Nanaimo RCMP at 250-754-2345 or contact Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or online at www.nanaimocrimestoppers.com.