PETOSKEY — Following the discovery of a crate of ammunition near Petoskey Middle School, local authorities increased police presence at district schools on Wednesday.

The box, containing approximately 10 rounds of 9mm ammunition, was found around 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, October 29 in a field north of the college, near a footpath. Authorities said no weapons or direct threats had been identified, but they were still taking precautionary measures.

The Petoskey Department of Public Safety first received an alert about the munitions through the state’s OK2SAY system, a confidential tip line that allows community members to report potential threats to schools. In response, law enforcement and school officials worked through the night to conduct a thorough search of Petoskey Middle School and Petoskey High School. A specially trained Michigan State Police K-9 unit assisted in the search by examining buildings, locker rooms and the area around where the ammunition was found.

Superintendent Jeffrey Leslie expressed his gratitude for the support and quick response from local authorities.

“I’m just very grateful for our partnership with the public safety office,” he said.

Public Safety Director Adrian Karr emphasized the priority given to the safety of students and staff during the nighttime search.

“We’re still investigating, but we haven’t had any other leads,” he said. “It was obviously a concern related to the location and what was found, so we took it very seriously, and it was all hands on deck last night.”

Following the search, no additional items were found in the school buildings or surrounding grounds.

Karr also expressed gratitude for the diligence and dedication of those involved in the operation.

“We really appreciate the hard work of the people who worked on this project overnight,” he said.

— Contact journalist Annie Doyle at (231) 675-0099 and [email protected].

This article was originally published in The Petoskey News-Review: Ammunition discovery near Petoskey school sparks police investigation