A swarm of law enforcement was dispatched to Cherry Republic in Glen Arbor after a 9-1-1 call reported a parking lot dispute that had falsely escalated into a shooting of an 8-year-old female in the neck at 2:45 p.m. Wednesday, according to the Leelanau County Sheriff’s Office.
“It was determined in a very short time that the original call was a “swatting” or hoax type of call. No other known incidents of any kind were reported during this entire time within the county,” Leelanau County Sheriff Mike Borkovich said in a press release.
As a result of the call, Glen Lake and the Leelanau School were temporarily placed into “secure” mode.
Law Enforcement units arrived on scene and immediately searched the area for victims, witnesses, and/or suspects, but found no unusual activity.
“We got a call that a little girl had been shot; when we got there, there was no victim. There wasn’t much for us to do; I imagine the police are handling it now and trying to figure out who called,” Glen Arbor Township Fire Chief Bryan Ferguson said.
Cherry Republic HQ Executive Assistant Rebecca Benedict said she walked into the Public House on the restaurant campus and saw state police and fire trucks lining up across the road.
“There was an unfounded claim that somebody heard a gunshot,” she said.
Benedict credited the staff with their calm response and said it didn’t drastically affect the business day.
“Everybody’s going about their day and enjoying the sunshine,” Benedict said.
An explosion of police radio chatter had agencies from across northwest Michigan scrambling toward Glen Arbor, including Glen Lake Fire Department, along with numerous Law Enforcement units from the Leelanau County Sheriff’s Office, National Park Service, and the Michigan State Police.
