Text threatening to shoot 4 students prompts Medicine Hat school closure, lockdowns

Threats made against four students sparked a series of lockdowns at schools located throughout Medicine Hat Monday.

Police said five students received a threatening anonymous text message on Sunday from someone describing themselves as a “shady stranger.” The text message named four specific students who the sender claimed they would shoot.

“Anyone with them is a dead man,” the text said. “I’m going to hunt them down and make it look suicidal.”

“If they try to run or hide bombs will be thrown at them.”

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Three of the students who received the text attend the same high school within the Medicine Hat Catholic Board of Education; one attends a high school in the Prairie Rose School Division and the fifth attends Eagle Butte High School.

Police said Monday afternoon the phone numbers that sent the texts appear to be “ghosted” or “spoofed” phone numbers, which can be obtained on the Internet.

They said several other people have since complained of similar threats sent to them in the past months, which are now under investigation. Police said the threats were similar to a prank reported throughout the United States in 2013.

Investigators said similar threats have been received by “another policing agency in Alberta” and that they have identified and are “engaged with” a person of interest from outside the province, who may be responsible for the threats.

Three of the students who received the text attend the same high school within the Medicine Hat Catholic Board of Education; one attends a high school in the Prairie Rose School Division and the fifth attends Eagle Butte High School.

Police contacted both the Catholic and public school boards in Medicine Hat to notify them of the threat.

One facility, McCoy High School, chose to close for the day and send students home as a precaution.

All schools in the Medicine Hat School District 76 and all Medicine Hat Catholic Board of Education schools chose to initiate a lockdown, as did Eagle Butte High School. During the lockdown, classes went on as usual but students were not allowed outside.

The Medicine Hat Police Service and Redcliff RCMP posted extra officers at each of the local high schools as a precaution.

The Medicine Hat Police Service Major Crimes Section is investigating to determine who may be responsible.

Anyone with information in relation is asked to contact the Medicine Hat Police Service at 403-529-8420.

Further information on individual school closures or lockdowns will be updated on each of the local school board websites including the Medicine Hat Catholic Board of Education site, Medicine Hat School District 76 site and Prairie Rose School Division site.

With files from Erika Tucker