SLEEPY EYE POLICE ADDRESSES SOCIAL MEDIA “CAT IN THE HAT” POST

The Sleepy Eye Police Department is continuing to investigate a concerning social media post on Tik Tok Tuesday involving images of Sleepy Eye Public and St. Mary’s school buildings.  Sleepy Eye schools were placed under a “soft lockdown” Tuesday by police after authorities received information of the post by a concerned citizen.  Police Chief Matt Andres says the post is circulating nationwide and was created by someone with the user name of Cat in the Hat…

Andres says an adult male was taken into custody in connection to the post.  Based on information obtained during the investigation, Andres says there was no actual threat to the public or any school associated with the post.  Andres says police have also been made aware of a second Cat in the Hat-related post that contained a large list of what appears to be random first names and also mentioned both New Ulm Public and Sleepy Eye Public but not St. Mary’s.  New Ulm Superintendent Sean Koster says in a Facebook post that the school is working with New Ulm Police but there is no known threat to the school or any students.  That post was removed from Tik Tok and the suspect detained was not responsible for the second post.  Andres says parents should talk to their kids about these posts which, he says, are basically meant for a prank but can cause real harm…

Andres says the investigation is ongoing and there is no credible threat to the public or any school associated with the Cat in the Hat posts.