Families across the Acalanes Union High School District, including those with students at Las Lomas and Northgate high schools in Walnut Creek, got a jarring reminder Monday that swatting hoaxes can reach their campuses.
Lafayette police locked down Acalanes High School and nearby Stanley Intermediate School on Aug. 17 after anonymous automated phone calls reported threats at both sites.
No actual threat was found. But the lockdowns lasted nearly an hour during the district's second week of classes.
Lafayette police posted a Nixle alert at 12:59 p.m. warning of a "potential threat" phoned in to Acalanes High on Pleasant Hill Road, according to the Contra Costa Herald, which reproduced the department's alerts. Officers deployed drones over the campus during the lockdown. A second alert followed at 1:29 p.m. after a similar call targeted Stanley Intermediate at 3455 School St.
Both lockdowns were lifted within the hour. The all-clear for Acalanes came at 1:47 p.m.; Stanley's followed at 1:52 p.m.
"There is no active threat to students, staff, or the surrounding community," the Lafayette Police Department said in its all-clear Nixle update. "Preliminary information indicates this was likely a 'swatting' call — a false report intended to prompt a large emergency response."
Officers remained on both campuses as a precaution while the investigation continued.
What it means for Walnut Creek families
Acalanes High is one of four high schools in AUHSD, which also operates Las Lomas and Northgate in Walnut Creek and serves students across Lafayette, Moraga, Orinda and Walnut Creek. No statement from AUHSD administration about the incident or any planned safety review has been made public.
The scare landed just days into the new school year. AUHSD's full-day schedule began Wednesday, Aug. 12, according to the district's social media, meaning students had been back barely a week when the calls came in.
Bay Area swatting trend
The incident fits a broader pattern of automated swatting calls targeting Bay Area schools. In November 2024, Piedmont High School and several other campuses were locked down after a similar wave of hoax threats, according to Hoodline.
The FBI warned in 2025 that schools are frequent swatting targets and that a single incident "may be an isolated event or part of a larger coordinated effort targeting multiple victims."
Under California Penal Code Section 148.3, falsely reporting an emergency can be charged as a misdemeanor or, if the hoax causes death or serious injury, a felony.
What's next
Lafayette police have not announced any suspects or said whether the two calls are believed to be connected. Anyone with information can reach the department's tip line at [email protected] or 24-hour dispatch at 925-284-5010.
