Police officials say a prank 911 call prompted a lockdown at an Overland Park elementary school earlier this week.
Overland Park officers responded to Sunrise Point Elementary School, 15800 Roe Ave., at 9:23 a.m. Tuesday after a Veterans Affairs Crisis Line received a threat.
Sunrise Point school is part of the Blue Valley School District.
Officer John Lacy, a spokesperson for Overland Park Police, said the crisis line reported that an armed subject was threatening to kill children at the school.
“The school went into lockdown, and [the] Overland Park Police Department and Blue Valley [School District] Police responded,” Lacy said. “A search and control of the exterior/interior yielded no threat.”
Blue Valley district officials did not immediately respond to the Post’s request for comment.
Threat appears to be a “swatting” incident
Lacy said Overland Park Police contacted the FBI following the threat on Tuesday.
“After further investigation, we believe the caller possibly lived in Europe,” Lacy said. “The school did reach out to the parents and sent an email.”
In an email to families Tuesday, Sunrise Point Principal Jamie Peemoeller said that police officials told the school it appeared to be “an incident of swatting, a prank threat to authorities with the intent of bringing a large number of police officers to a building.”
“Thank you to our staff and students who followed the procedures as we practiced,” Peemoeller said in her email. “In times like this, we appreciate the partnership with our local authorities.”
Extra supports made available to students
In a follow-up email to families sent later Tuesday, Peemoeller said the incident “may have been distressing” for some students and staff.
Peemoeller said the lockdown lasted about 30 minutes, with a “strong police presence” on campus and armed police officers in the school building.
“Although we follow clear protocols and regularly train for emergencies, it’s not typical for our staff to work with a large police presence in the building. This was a difficult and emotional experience for them,” Peemoeller said.
She said “caring adults” would be on hand Tuesday and Wednesday, “available to speak with students and staff who needed extra support.”
Peemoeller encouraged families to use the Blue Valley School District’s online resources to talk to their children about how best to deal with crisis and trauma.
“The rest of the school day went smoothly and we appreciate your trust, patience and support as we work together to keep our school a safe place for learning,” she said.
Peemoeller added that the school planned to continue with its scheduled activities for the remainder of the week, including a Halloween celebration on Thursday.
Mike Frizzell contributed to this report.
