Police still figuring out reported shots last week at Highline College

No determination yet about what people heard

Des Moines Police are still trying to determine what happened last week at Highline College when people thought they heard gunshots.

Law enforcement agencies swept the campus and determined no shots were fired after initial 911 reports on the morning of Feb. 16 that multiple shots had been fired. Numerous police agencies responded to the Des Moines campus along South 240th Street just west of Pacific Highway South.

“The case has been assigned to a detective for further investigation,” said Des Moines Police spokesman Doug Jenkins in a Tuesday email. “Because it is still an active investigation, I cannot comment specifically. What I can tell you is we are re-contacting all of the 911 callers as well as people who have submitted tips or provided other information.”

Police are trying to figure out how many 911 callers actually heard gunshots.

“It looks like we had about 11 911 calls actually reporting shots fired at the college,” said Jenkins, who then clarified that statement. “It’s difficult to tell who called 911 to report shots fired and people who called because their child was on campus or for some other reason. So it could be more and it could be less than 11.”

Anyone who was on campus and saw or heard anything is asked to contact the Des Moines Police Department at 206-878-3301.