Louisiana university urges vigilance after false gun alarm

BATON ROUGE, La. – Louisiana State University President F. King Alexander is encouraging the college community to continue reporting anything suspicious even though a previous report of a man with a gun turned out to be a false alarm.

On Tuesday, someone in Coates Hall saw a man with a gun and reported it. LSU police locked down the campus and conducted a room-by-room search of the building before declaring an all-clear.

It turns out the man was an armed law enforcement officer from the Louisiana attorney general’s office. The man, dressed in plainclothes, was on campus to help educate students about ways to protect themselves online.

The office was invited by the Women’s Center to present during LSU’s inaugural Welcome Week, Attorney General Jeff Landry said in a statement Wednesday. Classes are not in session at the state’s flagship university, but many students have been moving back to the school after summer break.

The event, known as Engage.Lead.Geaux, was aimed at helping students stay safe on social media, understand internet-use laws and protect their identities, Landry said.

In a separate statement, Alexander urged students to remain vigilant.

“If you see something, say something,” he said. “I can’t emphasize how important it is to err on the side of caution. We would rather have a false alarm than not be aware of a potential issue.”

The president urged students to register their cellphone numbers through their “myLSU” account to receive emergency updates.

Coates Hall houses academic departments and several student support services, according to the LSU website.