KINGSTON, Jamaica — Jamaica College (JC) says following investigations, it has learned that the now-viral incident of a student slapping his schoolmate shown on video stemmed from a disagreement about stolen items.

In a statement late Monday, the JC Board of Management said the primary students involved in the video were interviewed in the presence of their parents, and signed statements were secured.

The student seen in the video being physically assaulted admitted in writing that about two weeks ago, he “took” certain items that did not belong to him, from a group of boys with whom he was socialising. These included a jacket, a pair of glasses and a sum of money, the statement said.

The statement said that when initially questioned about the missing items, he denied any involvement before later acknowledging his actions and committing to returning the items in question.

“In the days that followed, he returned a portion of the money and some of the items but failed to make full restitution and missed several agreed deadlines to do so,” JC said.

It added, “The aggrieved students subsequently confronted him on school grounds and demanded the outstanding balance. The physical altercation captured in the video occurred at that point.”

The board described the incident, which involved two boys slapping another youngster in the face, one with the palm of his hand and the other with a belt, as deeply disturbing.

READ: JC mum on viral video of students assaulting schoolmate

Acknowledging that it had been aware of the video since approximately 8:00 pm Saturday, JC said the school regards the behaviour depicted as reprehensible and unacceptable and condemns it in the strongest possible terms.

It noted that by Sunday, it had identified the boys pictured and secured an initial, though unverified, impression of what had transpired.

The school says all students involved will now appear before Jamaica College’s Disciplinary Committee for “appropriate action in accordance with the school’s established procedures.”

Jamaica College said it remains fully and unequivocally committed to the safety and well-being of every student in its care, and to fair and thorough investigation of all incidents.