MANHATTAN, Mont. – A fraudulent phone call sent Manhattan High School into lockdown on Thursday. Local police believe the call was a swatting incident, one of many in the region identified in the last month.
Swatting is when a “deliberately false call” is made with the goal of prompting a significant law enforcement response, the Manhattan Police Department explained. Swatting is “a serious criminal act that endangers students, staff, first responders, and the broader community,” it said.
The department said it received a report of a disturbance at Manhattan High School at 12:42 p.m. on Thursday. It said it sent officers immediately, alongside units from the Gallatin County Sheriff’s Office and the Montana Highway Patrol.
Officers were at the scene within two minutes, the department said.
The school went into lockdown immediately and the joint law enforcement response worked together to investigate the reported threat.
No legitimate threat was found.
“A thorough search of the campus was conducted, and it was determined there were no legitimate threats to the students, faculty, or community around the campus,” the department wrote.
After the investigation, law enforcement determined the call to be a swatting incident. The origin of the call is under investigation by responding law enforcement services and the Montana Department of Criminal Investigation.
Similar swatting incidents took place recently at Billings Senior High School in Billings and at Shadle Park High over in Spokane, Washington.