Police presence expected at Chapel Hill schools after man told children he would 'shoot up school'

Security will be heightened Tuesday at Smith Middle School and Seawell Elementary School in Chapel Hill after officials learned of a rumored threat against the schools.

According to a message from Principal Sulura Jackson sent to parents Monday night, school officials received a second-hand report of a man and woman looking near the school. The man reportedly told four girls, all under the age of 10, that he was going to “shoot up the school” on Tuesday.

Jackson said the man reportedly told the girls he had a gun in the camouflage backpack he was carrying.

School officials said they have been unable to confirm the credibility of the threat, but will have a noticeable police presence at Smith Middle and Seawell Elementary on Tuesday as a precaution.

The schools will also implement a closed campus policy Tuesday and will require all students to remain on campus during lunch as a precaution, Jackson said.

The incident is the latest in a string of threats received at North Carolina schools since a mass shooting killed 17 people at a high school in Parkland, Fla.

Several students have been arrested in recent weeks for making threats against schools.

At Middle Creek High School, student Craig Garner West was charged last month after authorities said he brought a pellet gun to school. An attorney for West said the weapon was brought to school accidentally.