Bloomfield school went into lockdown in lieu of recent events

BLOOMFIELD, Ind. (WTHI) - School hallways were extra quiet Monday after Bloomfield School District addressed last week's concerns.

Thursday was a school day like any other, which is why at first, Bloomfield High School faculty weren't concerned when they saw a teenage boy trying to enter the school.

Officials said the 17-year-old came to a side entrance. The school principal approached him from outside and asked what he was doing. The boy responded with he wanted to enroll.

"We didn't think anything about that until we got a phone call from a staff member who had made contact with him," Bloomfield School Superintendent Dan Sichting said.

The teenager spoke to a teacher just a couple blocks down from the school claiming he was an undercover officer looking for a young woman.

"I heard him say 'did he have a gun' and obviously I became very, very in tune with the conversation at that point.  When I heard 'gun' and then I heard he had handcuffs," Sichting said.

After immediately contacting Greene County Sheriff's Department, the school notified parents.

"It's kind of shocking. I mean, you know, it's Bloomfield, that stuff is not supposed to happen here, but it can happen anywhere," mother, Arlene Skinner said.

The boy is at the Clay County Juvenile Center.

However, the school is wary of copy cats.

That's why Friday and Monday, it went into full lockdown mode.

That means, on top of its existing precautionary measures including locked doors,cameras and intercom systems, all students were required to stay inside their classrooms between passing periods.

This helps the school to monitor the hallways. Only students with clear passes had permission to leave.

"We try to look at the safety of our students and make judgments based on what's best for the safety of all students whenever we make a decision," Sichting said.

The school district expects to end its lockdown Monday.

The boy isn't an adult, so his name is not being released at this time.

News 10 made several phone calls to find out whether or not he will be tried as a juvenile or adult, but we did not hear back.

We'll continue to follow this story and bring you more details as they become available.