Platteville police said the man whose threat to himself prompted the closing of Platteville Public Schools today is now in protective custody.

Law enforcement has been looking for the 28-year-old man after police were told he was in the Mound View Park area with a rifle and was threatening to harm himself today around 5 a.m.

Platteville Public Schools decided to delay opening schools for two hours around 6:10 a.m., and then decided to close schools around 8 a.m.

Police announced that contrary to social media statements there was no active shooter in the city. 

Around 11 a.m. the person was reported to be on foot between Platteville and Belmont, prompting a search by Lafayette County deputies and the state Department of Justice. That also prompted a soft lockdown of Belmont schools at the Lafayette County Sheriff’s Office’s request. 

A PPS email said that all after-school activities today will go on as scheduled, including tonight’s Platteville–River Valley basketball games.

Police were assisted by the Grant County and Lafayette County sheriff’s offices and the Grant County Crisis Resolution Team, Grant County Emergency Management, UW–Platteville police and the state Department of Justice.

See The Platteville Journal this week for more on this story.