Hoax leads to lockdown at Ardrey Kell High School, police say

CHARLOTTE — Ardrey Kell High School in south Charlotte was placed on a lockdown Friday afternoon due to a reported threat, but police say nothing credible was found.

The school sent a message to families after noon saying, “There is possibly an armed person on campus.” According to the message from the school, law enforcement officers were at the campus. Sources tell Channel 9 they were sweeping the building.

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Lockdown at Ardrey Kell High School on Sept. 22

CMPD said at about 12:35 p.m. that no threat was found and there was no evidence of a shooting. Shortly afterward, the department said the report was a hoax “consistent with hoaxes going on nationwide.”

A video shared with Channel 9 shows a CMPD officer addressing a group of parents who gathered at the school. The officer told the parents that nothing was found, and they appreciated parents’ patience.

Police said officers were also called to Community House Middle School to investigate reports of a threat. Both schools were on a precautionary lockdown, CMPD said.

No injuries were reported.

‘The doors were barricaded’

The classes inside those CMS schools came to a screeching halt Friday, and it all started with one phone call.

“I was outside when it happened, so we had to run inside to the outside trailers to hide,” one student told Channel 9′s Jonathan Lowe.

CMPD says the call came in at around 11:59 a.m. Friday. The caller claimed an armed person dressed in black was inside the high school, shooting everyone.

“It was really scary, the doors were barricaded,” said another student. She said they immediately went into lockdown.

It was the message from the principal saying there was “possibly an armed person on campus” that sent parents into a frenzy. Some were fighting traffic to get to the school.

Her parents decided to walk.

“I work right up the street, so I just want to get my kid and go,” her mom said.

CMPD said its officers were on campus within three minutes of the call.

In addition, thousands of CMS faculty and staff members just completed active survival training that addresses situations like these.

“Our training is every year and it’s a continuous training, we actually have training going on next week as well,” said Maj. J.D. Thomas with CMPD.

Meanwhile, CMPD is promising to follow up on the hoax and the senseless chaos that it caused.

“We are going to go after the person that called this in, and our federal partners and us are going to find that person and make sure they are charged.”

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