University of Oklahoma’s Norman campus was put on lockdown after one caller reported an active shooter on campus (Image: @UofOklahoma/Twitter)
Police suspect that the active shooter call at the University of Oklahoma may have been a case of swatting
The University of Oklahoma put the Norman campus on lockdown on Friday after one caller called 911 to report an active shooter. Police forces rushed to the spot and found no evidence of shooting, raising suspicions that it could have been a hoax call, according to a report by new agency BNO.
OU-NORMAN Critical 10:53pm: OUPD has issued an ALL CLEAR. After a thorough search, no threat was found. There is no threat to campus. Alert has been canceled.— Univ. of Oklahoma (@UofOklahoma) April 8, 2023
Around 9:24pm on Friday evening the university sent an emergency alert to students asking them to take shelter due to an “active shooter” on Van Vleet Oval. The Van Vleet Oval is at the centre of the Norman campus.
“OU-Norman Emergency: There is an active shooter at the Van Vleet Oval. Take immediate action now. Run. Hide. Fight!,” the university’s authorities said in their first alert. In another tweet, the university authorities said that “possible shots fired”.
I commend our OUPD officers and law enforcement from across the area for their swift response tonight. Our officers took immediate action, our emergency protocols worked, and our community was kept informed. Campus is safe. (1/2)— Joseph Harroz, Jr. – OU President (@OU_President) April 8, 2023
A spokesperson for the University of Oklahoma said police received multiple calls of shots being fired on campus, near the library of the university but the officers found no evidence of a shooting even after searching for more than an hour. They also were unable to find any victims.
“OUPD has issued an ALL CLEAR. After a thorough search, no threat was found. There is no threat to campus. Alert has been canceled,” the authorities said in a tweet.
Police are probing whether the entire incident was a case of swatting. Swatting happens when an individual calls 911 and reports false information to draw police to a certain location, the news agency defined. Several American schools have been targets of swatting calls in the recent past.
The news agency said police responded to at least 220 schools across the US after fake calls.
News agency Reuters defines ‘swatting’ as a prank in which a caller falsely reports an emergency that requires a police response, usually by Special Weapons and Tactics, or SWAT, teams.
These calls can be very dangerous and the members of the gaming community have been accused of using this method to get back at fellow rivals.
In 2017, Tyler Barriss, 26, of Los Angeles, California, was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison for making hoax calls, including a so-called “swatting” incident where Kansas police responded to a false report and fatally shot an unarmed man, Reuters said in a separate report.
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