Salem Police Add Patrols After Collins Middle School Shooting Threat

SALEM, MA — There was an increased police presence at Salem Public Schools on Friday after Salem Police Chief Lucas Miller said a "not credible" threat was made toward the Collins Middle School during the morning.

Miller said Salem police received a series of anonymous 911 calls Friday morning that included false reports of shots fired, profanity, hang-ups and a threat to stage a shooting attack at the middle school.

While Miller said that while the threats were determined to be "not credible" the added police presence was assigned.

"The department was already in a heightened security stance at Salem schools due to events elsewhere in the country," Miller said. "Out of an abundance of caution, and due in part to our ongoing concern for our schools, we have assigned a police presence throughout the day to Collins and further increased our overall coverage of all schools in Salem."

Miller said the source of the calls is being investigated.

"The Salem Police Department views threats to the safety of our children as our highest priority," Miller said.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)