CASPER, Wyo., Jan. 15 (UPI) -- Federal agents in Oklahoma arrested a suspect believed responsible for online threats of violence to Casper, Wyo., the Casper Police Department said.
The police department said in a news release the suspect arrested Tuesday was believed to have no connection to Wyoming and that an online post Tuesday threatening mass violence was randomly directed toward the city of Casper.
The news release said the online post "made reference to using primitive and unconventional-type weapons to include baseball bats and kitchen knives as well as firearms." The post was found "on a message board-style website known for hoaxes and pranks," the Casper, Wyo., Star-Tribune reported Tuesday.
Area residents made numerous telephone calls to the Casper Public Safety Communications Center, beginning at around 7 a.m., to report the threats, the police press release said.
Access to local schools was restricted as a precautionary measure. School lockdowns that began at 10 a.m. were lifted by the afternoon, the newspaper said.
Police Sgt. Dean Amend said after news of the arrest, "We don't know if it's a serious threat, or if it's someone thinking this is a clever act, but we do take these things seriously."
