False Shooter Threat Appears to be ‘Swatting’ Incident

Police officers on top of CMC's Kravis Center.

Around 4:44 p.m. on March 13, the Claremont Police Department (CPD) received a phone call warning of a possible gunman at Claremont McKenna College, prompting a school-wide lockdown and immediate response from surrounding police departments. After sweeping the school and surrounding area, the CPD, Claremont Colleges Campus Safety, and other assisting agencies did not find any signs of a shooter. 

In the initial call, an anonymous individual told dispatch that “they were in a restroom… holding someone captive and threatening to harm them,” and that “they had a bomb and were going to walk around with a rifle and shoot anyone they saw on the campus,” according to a CPD Instagram post.

Officers from Claremont, Upland, Ontario and La Verne police departments conducted a campus search, many carrying tactical shields and AR-style weapons. A SWAT vehicle was also present as law enforcement worked to evacuate students and secure the area.

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Students received a series of campus safety alerts throughout the afternoon and evening, advising them first to “STAY AWAY FROM THE AREA” (4:55 p.m.), that there was a “POTENTIAL SHOOTER ON CMC CAMPUS” (5:10 p.m.), and that students should “SHELTER IN PLACE. IF YOU ARE OFF CAMUS [sic] STAY OFF CAMPUS” (5:15 p.m.). Over the following hours, alerts reminded students to continue sheltering. At 8:02 p.m., a final alert was sent out: “Claremont Police Department (CPD) and other assisting law enforcement agencies have now determined that there is no active threat on our campus. Shelter in Place order has been lifted… The Campus can return to normal operation.”

At 7:30 p.m., CPD Lieutenant Jason Walters gave a statement to the press. He noted that officers found “no signs of any crime,” and that the situation appears to be an instance of “swatting,” or intentionally sending law enforcement officers to respond to a fake emergency. 

The call was the second swatting incident in Southern California in the last 48 hours. On March 12, reports of an armed individual at Loma Linda Children’s Hospital resulted in a massive law enforcement response. The all-clear was announced a few hours later.

“That’s what our detective will be following up on, to see if the two are related to one another,” Lieutenant Walters told the Independent. If caught, the caller could be held liable for the full cost of the police response.

Earlier in the day, students received an alert regarding a “Mental Health Incident” at the intersection of Dartmouth Ave. and 10th St., which resulted in a police response. Lieutenant Walters told the Independent, “At this point, there's no connection" between the mental health incident and shooter report.