Local News

UPDATE: Manhattan Christian parents asked to take precautions after report of suspicious person

Posted: Feb 8, 2013 3:31 PM
Updated: Feb 8, 2013 3:31 PM

UPDATE: Details have been released on a suspicious incident that prompted Manhattan Christian School's superintendent to issue an alert to parents.

At around 5:25 p.m. Thursday, a Churchill resident reported that an older man in a silver or grey sedan said "hello" to children in the Churchill area and tossed pennies on the ground near them, according to a news release from the Gallatin County Sheriff's Office.

Deputies checked the area and will continue extra patrols, the release states.

While the sheriff's office has made no requests for security in the community, the school is asking parents to take precautions.

Read below for more on the suggested precautions.

CHURCHILL - Parents in the Churchill area are being asked to take precautions after a suspicious vehicle was reported in the area.

Manhattan Christian School parents and guardians received text messages and email alerts this morning encouraging parents to walk with their young children after reports of a person approaching children.

The message states that these measures are being taken as precautionary steps and there is not an eminent threat.

The message from the superintendent states that there is a "potentially dangerous situation for children living in the Churchill area" in which a person driving a grey or silver vehicle was reportedly approaching young children on the street.

Parents of young children (sixth grade and younger) were encouraged to pick up their children at the school. The school also offered to provide walking escorts for children. It also states that an adult will meet buses in the morning.

The sheriff's department planned to increase patrols in the area prior to and at school dismissal times, the message states.

"This is a precautionary step for the safety of your children. We have not been alerted to an eminent threat," the message from Superintendent Patrick De Jong states.