Cedar Rapids police respond to third ‘swatting’ call this year at Jefferson

CEDAR RAPIDS — Police responded Wednesday to a “swatting” call at Jefferson High School — the third such hoax there this year.

Swatting calls are false reports of threats that are made in an attempt to cause panic and instigate a police response.

The call came in just before 1 p.m. Wednesday. The school, at 1243 20th St. SW, went into a soft lockdown and Cedar Rapids police responded. After police conducted a search and found no threat, an all-clear was given at 1:36 p.m., according to the police department.

This is the third swatting call at the school this year. The first call happened Feb. 2 and the second happened April 1.

On April 19, after a swatting call at Harding Middle School, police arrested a 13-year-old boy on charges of charges of making false reports to law enforcement and of third-degree harassment.

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