Final update as of 2:20 p.m.: Officers located multiple adult witnesses who had observed a person matching the suspect's description on the bike path contemporaneously to this incident. They all said he was waving a cell phone in his hand, not a gun. We believe the initial report is unfounded.
Earlier posts below:
Update as of 12:15 p.m.: The “shelter in place” at the school has been lifted, with no additional witnesses having seen the suspect since around 11:30 a.m., and with the campus itself having been checked and cleared. Officers will stay in the area out of an abundance of caution.
Original post:
Officers are in the area of Palo Alto High School investigating reports of a male seen with a handgun on the bike path to the rear of the school.
School staff has chosen to place the campus into a “shelter in place” status while our officers investigate. Thus far, we have not received any additional reports of the man being seen.
The preliminary description is of a Hispanic male adult with tattoos on his arms. One report was that he was pointing the handgun at passing cars on Alma Street.
We will provide relevant updates on our Twitter/X account at
www.twitter.com/PaloAltoPolice, and will provide a final update here on Nixle once the situation has been safely resolved.
