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School locked down briefly during search
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Eisenhower Elementary School, located at 1212 Garfield St., went into lock-down mode briefly Wednesday afternoon, after a domestic disturbance was reported in the neighborhood. A woman at Dollar Tree, 3502 10th St., called the police at 1:18 p.m., reporting a known person was making threats.

Lt. Bill Browne at the Great Bend Police Department said school officials were notified and opted to lock down. Meanwhile, police made a traffic stop and arrested the suspect, Hilario Montez, Great Bend, who was evaluated by the on-call psychologist and deemed not a danger. He was then booked into the Barton County Jail on a charge of criminal threat, and held in lieu of $5,000 bond.

Eisenhower Principal Tricia Reiser referred questions to Unified School District’s public relations spokesman, Jennifer Schartz, who said Great Bend Police Department had requested for the school to be placed into a short lock-down. A letter was sent home to parents that afternoon explaining this standard safety precaution was no cause for alarm. "It was over within two minutes," Schartz said. "The students were never in any danger."