A call threatening a mass shooting at Newberry High School on the morning of Friday, May 30, 2025, prompted a full-scale law enforcement response and lockdown of the school, but no threat was ultimately found.
At 9:01 a.m., the Alachua County Sheriff’s Office received a report from the Levy County Sheriff’s Office stating a male caller had phoned their non-emergency line claiming he was inside a bathroom at Newberry High School armed with a rifle. The caller gave a name and date of birth before disconnecting.
Due to an existing partnership between the Alachua County School Board and the Sheriff’s Office, a Sergeant and a Deputy were already stationed at the school when the threat was received. The two deputies acted immediately, initiating a lockdown and securing students in classrooms while removing any from the hallways.
Additional deputies arrived on the scene within minutes. Meanwhile, those already on campus began a systematic search of the school for any signs of a threat.
Authorities later determined there was no active threat. No weapons or suspicious individuals were found, and all students and staff remained unharmed.
Investigators now believe the call was a “swatting” incident—a false emergency report made to provoke a police response, typically using spoofed internet-based phone numbers.
The Alachua County Sheriff’s Office continues to investigate the source of the call.
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