FARGO (KFGO) – Fargo Davies High, West Fargo High, and schools in several other cities across North Dakota received unverified threats, including threats of active shooters in the schools, Thursday morning.
Fargo Police said dispatch received a call that there was an active shooter at Fargo Davies. They said they checked video footage at the school and did not find any evidence of a shooter.
Fargo Davies Principal Troy Cody said in an email to parents that the calls were quickly deemed to be hoaxes and there was no threat to the school.
“These calls have been determined to be part of what is occurring around the nation, which is called ‘swatting,’” Cody said. “Swatting is when someone reports a fake emergency to authorities. Swatting has been impacting school districts around the nation this school year.”
Cody said school safety is of the utmost importance and concern. He said a full investigation will be done to see if they can determine who made the calls. Fargo Davies is operating as a normal day today.
Schools in Jamestown, Grand Forks, Bismarck, Williston, and Watford City also received the calls.
Jamestown Public School Superintendent Dr. Rob Lech said law enforcement was notified by phone of a “potential threat” at the school, forcing the campus into immediate lockdown.
“While the potential threat was not verified by law enforcement and there is no immediate threat, a systemic sweep is being conducted to ensure the safety and security of all students and staff,” Dr. Lech stated. “After consultation with law enforcement and out of an abundance of caution, all schools have currently been placed on lockdown.”
Last month, similar ‘swatting calls’ were made to schools across Minnesota.
Alexandria Police Chief Scott Kent said in late September that he believed the ‘swatting’ calls made to schools in Alexandria, Fergus Falls, and St. Paul came from a phone number IP address in Ethiopia.
“We were able to capture the number that came in,” Kent said. “There were multiple swatting calls across the state, but three of them were consistent with the same phone number. We were able to track that back to a phone number IP address in Ethiopia.”
Minneapolis, New Ulm, Fairmont, Rochester, Cloquet, Austin, Brainerd, Rosemount, Mankato, Grand Rapids, Bemidji, and International Falls also received swatting calls.
Officials said there was no danger to any students.
