A social media hoax that happened Thursday afternoon resulted in the lockdown of a school and an extensive search by officers looking for an armed man who was said to be on campus, according to Chief Terrence Green of the Lexington Police Department.

At 4:20 p.m., officers were dispatched to Northside Christian Academy after a parent called saying a Snapchat threat had been sent among students that there was a man on campus with a gun. Northside Christian Academy immediately put the school in lockdown and teams of officers began searching the school room by room and bringing students, faculty, and staff outside.

After everyone was believed to be removed from the school, Northside Christian Academy staff worked to reunify students with parents in the parking lot. Officers then completed a second search of the entire building to ensure that there was no threat within and that no one was still hiding from the lockdown.

During the investigation, it was found that a Northside Christian Academy high school student had sent a message on Snapchat about a man with a gun on campus to a friend as a joke. That message was then shared with other students.

This investigation is ongoing to determine who all were involved in this social media hoax and when charges are made, this news release will be updated.