Freeman High School ‘swatted’ in hoax call

Freeman High School went into lockdown Monday over a fake threat, the school’s administration said in an email.

The Spokane County Sheriff’s Office received the threat in a phone call around 11 a.m., Cpl. Mark Gregory said. The department responded to the high school and swept the area to make sure it was safe. The threat was determined by the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office to be “swatting,” or making a hoax phone call to get the SWAT team to respond to a particular place, according to the school district’s email.

Although it was a hoax, it can cause unneeded stress to parents, students and staff, the email said. Freeman endured a school shooting that killed a student and injured others in 2017.

The call is under investigation.