Student in Halloween costume causes lockdown on MassArt campus
BOSTON - Two colleges in Boston briefly locked down their campuses Wednesday afternoon following a report of a person with a gun nearby that turned out to be a student wearing a Halloween costume.
The Massachusetts College of Art and Design and Wentworth Institute of Technology both sent alerts about a "campus lockdown in progress." Boston police said the colleges reopened after a person was located with a "fake gun," and authorities determined there was no threat.
One student told WBZ their friend was wearing the costume for a photoshoot. "We yelled that we think it's one of our friends, because they were doing a Halloween photoshoot," the student said. "We compared the photos to each other and they looked exactly alike."
MassArt Alert: ALL CLEAR Boston PD has cleared the area, the lockdown has been lifted. Further information to follow via email. ALL CLEAR
— Massachusetts College of Art and Design (@MassArt) October 26, 2022
Boston police initially told WBZ-TV that they received a call at 1:15 p.m. for a report of a person with a gun near MassArt at 621 Huntington Ave. A spokesperson for MassArt said a Wentworth student reported an armed person near a residence hall on the MassArt campus.
MassArt has canceled evening classes.