A false report of an active shooter at a Colorado Springs school on Wednesday may be linked to a series of "swatting" calls in other areas of the country, according to a news release from the Colorado Springs Police Department.
Just before 10:24 a.m., police received a call from someone with an out-of-state phone number speaking with a "foreign accent" and claiming to be a teacher at The Colorado Springs School, a private school in the Broadmoor area, police said.
The caller reported an active shooter on campus and that "several students were shot," according to police.
Patrol officers and members of specialized units quickly responded to the scene and determined that the report was one of several "swatting calls," or false active shooter reports, received across the nation around the same time.Â
Community Notification:
— Colorado Springs Police Department (@CSPDPIO) December 7, 2022
CSPD is aware of a report of an active shooter at The Colorado Springs School. There is NO active shooter and NO threat to students and faculty. This is being investigated as false reporting. Officers are still at the school.
Police said similar calls were reported by the Denver Police Department on Wednesday.
Police in Morgantown, W. Va., received a similar phone call on Tuesday and quickly determined it to be a hoax, according to a news release from the department. The release went on to say other police departments in West Virginia, Ohio and Kentucky also received similar swatting calls on Tuesday.
Police are working to determine the identity of the caller or callers.Â
