Police Investigate Report of Gun at Sartell Football Game, Find No Evidence

(KNSI) – A report of a student with a gun led to some uneasy moments at the Sartell High School football game Friday night.

According to a press release from the Sartell Police Department, towards the end of the matchup between the Sabres and Alexandria Cardinals on Friday evening, police received several calls from concerned parents claiming their kids had reported that another student had flashed a handgun. Officers already working the game immediately started to investigate.

As officers conducted interviews with students at the game, none could confirm they ever saw a gun, just that they had heard rumors the student had a gun and flashed it. None of the students police talked with heard the student say they were armed.

The student in question had left the game with their parent, and the police tracked them down. Officers say they both cooperated with investigators and denied ever having a gun at the game or saying to anyone they had a gun at the game. Deputies didn’t find any firearms, and no threats were made, but the department takes such claims very seriously.

Police say they will continue their investigation, but at this time don’t have any evidence that there was a gun at the game.

According to authorities, they’ve seen a recent increase in false claims of violence or threats meant to cause fear.

The press release says officers “understand how uneasy incidents like this can make students, parents, and school staff, which has been amplified by unspeakable tragedies we’ve seen unfold locally and nationwide these past days and weeks. This highlights even more the importance of speaking up and reporting any potential threats or suspicious activity immediately so that we can address them and intervene quickly.”

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