Suspicious man enters Lely High School despite security improvements

Wednesday evening, a suspicious man got inside Lely High School looking for an adult education student. Despite all the security, another student opened the door and let him inside.

Byron Picado was able to get inside the school, demanding to see a student during Lely’s adult education programs.

Rich Kolko, the safety and security specialist for WINK News, said the person was piggybacked in.

“A student may have known the person,” Kolko said. “Certainly one of the worst nightmares for the police allowing people that don’t belong to the school.”

Kolko said school security nowadays is focused on having a perimeter and knowing who is entering the school. But when other people let them inside, that becomes difficult.

“That isn’t very good hard to get that message across to the students,” Kolko said.

A youth relations deputy was able to get Picado out of the school and he was arrested for trespassing. Nobody was hurt. This incident comes one month after a man shot and killed a woman in the high school parking lot during an adult education program.

The Collier County School District said it is continuing to evaluate safety procedures in coordination with law enforcement, which worried parents are happy to hear.

“You can’t focus on your education if you don’t feel safe,” Jay Potter said.

“Those dollars need to be concentrated on our kids and their safety,” Greg Yanda said.