A 12-year-old was arrested on Wednesday for allegedly making a prank phone call that led to a school lockdown.
A 12-year-old boy was arrested over an alleged prank phone call that forced a Minnesota town’s schools to be placed on lockdown Wednesday.
Scott County Sheriff Kevin Studnicka said a person called 911 and told dispatchers that a gunman with an AK-47 was on a New Prague school and had shot several people. This prompted school authorities to implement a lockdown for its middle school and high school, The Associated Press reported.
When it was determined that there was no gunman and no one was injured, police suspected it was a hoax.
“He claimed he needed help because there was a shooter in the building with an AK-47 and that there were a couple of victims,” Studnick told AP.
[Related: 12-year-old Arrested for Prank Call: Other Recent ‘SWATing’ Pranks]
Police Chief Mark Vosejpka told the news agency that his office located the 12-year-old boy, who was not named.
School officials told parents that the schools would be closed down for the day.
Laura Knoke of New Prague Middle School told the Minneapolis Star-Tribune: “All students and staff are safe.”
“Officers are checking every room,” she told the paper. “Nothing else is going on. We are just in a lockdown, and the officers are checking the building.”
Last month, a student phoned in a bomb threat to the town’s high school, AP reported. That student was subsequently expelled.
New Prague is located around 45 miles southwest of Minneapolis.
The Epoch Times publishes in 35 countries and in 21 languages. Subscribe to our e-newsletter.
Friends Read Free