False gun threat at Long Island middle school connected to social media prank, officials say

A fake gun threat at a Long Island middle school was reportedly inspired by social media, according to district officials. 

On Monday, Uniondale Union Free School District Superintendent Monique Darrisaw-Akil wrote a letter to parents about the incident at Lawrence Road Middle School. 

According to the letter, school officials were “alerted to a threat made to student safety” in the afternoon and put the school on lockdown. However, the threat was later deemed “not credible” by police.

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A fake gun threat at Lawrence Road Middle School on Long Island was reportedly inspired by social media, according to officials. 
(iStock)

“The school principal and District safety personnel immediately contacted the Nassau County Police Department, which quickly arrived at the school building and conducted a thorough investigation,” Darrisaw-Akil wrote in the letter. “The police department concluded that the threat was false and not credible.”

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The Nassau County Police Department has not yet responded to Fox News’ request for comment.

Lawrence Road Middle School is pictured.
(Google Maps)

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Darrisaw-Akil told parents that the police commissioner connected the false threat to “a social media prank in states throughout the country.”

Last month, David Dunn, principal of Granger High School in Salt Lake County, Utah, released a letter to families regarding a similar threat and asked parents, “if you are unable to monitor your child’s smartphone and social media use, that you restrict access to it.”

School officials were “alerted to a threat made to student safety” on Monday afternoon and put the school on lockdown. However, the threat was later deemed “not credible” by police.
(iStock)

“Out of an abundance of caution, we will have an increased police presence on our campus over the next few days,” Dunn’s letter read, which can be found on the school’s website.

Darrisaw-Akil’s letter included a similar safety announcement: “In any event, out of an abundance of caution, the District has arranged for an increased police presence at our school buildings tomorrow to ensure the seamlessness and safety of our normal school day.”