A major police response was sent to one of the Waukegan High School campuses after officials say they received a report of a person armed with a rifle Thursday morning.
The Waukegan Police Department received a report around 10:12 a.m. Thursday for a threat at Waukegan High School Brookside Campus, 2325 Brookside Avenue.
Waukegan Deputy Police Chief Scott Chastain said it was reported to dispatchers that a subject was armed with an assault rifle.
The information appeared to be coming from the United Kingdom via a Google app.
Chastain said the name the caller provided showed no record of being a student or resident of Waukegan.
The call location shortly changed from the app to inside the school.
Officers made contact with school staff and placed the school on lockdown, Chastain said.
Police began organizing search teams and locations to be searched.
Officers cleared the interior and exterior of the school, including offsite locations, but did not locate any guns or suspects.
Officers left the scene after clearing the area and students were released from the lockdown to resume their school day.
“At this time, we believe that this was a false call similar to police ‘swatting’ calls,” Chastain said.
The Waukegan Police Department said they take these threats “very seriously” and immediately allocated resources to the incident.
“We remind people that when these ‘swatting’ incidents occur, they take up a lot of resources, therefore taking away from other duties and assignments in the City,” Chastain said.
Chastain lauded officers and supervisory staff for their quick and thorough response.
“We also thank the school staff and administration for their cooperation in making this incident come to a successful conclusion,” he added.