Coventry Police Monitoring TikTok 'Gun Violence' Challenge

COVENTRY, RI — Police and school officials in Coventry are aware of a TikTok challenge that's sparking concern in districts across the country. The trend reportedly encourages students to threaten gun violence at their schools on Friday, Dec. 17.

Thursday night, Coventry police said they were "aware of some concerning information circulating on several social media sites regarding the safety of school students, specifically tomorrow." No specific threats were made in Coventry or anywhere else in the state, the department said.

"The public should be aware that the Coventry Police Department and the Coventry School Department takes any and all threats regarding the safety and security of our students and faculty very seriously," the department said. "We will be working collaboratively with our education partners to increase our security measures and police presence as we move towards the holiday break."

The department encouraged the public to report "any specific information they feel may be important" by calling the police station at 401-826-1100.

"Remember, if you see something, say something," the statement concluded.

Some districts say they have been "inundated" with questions about the social media school violence rumors and have responded in letters to parents and public statements in the days leading up to Friday.

While it's unclear where the rumor originated, a news release issued by the Tooele County School District in Utah said the original threat started as a way for students to skip school, but "morphed into something much more disturbing."

According to some reports, the December challenge is one of several in a string of monthly challenges stemming from the social media platform.

In September, another challenge called "Devious Licks" encouraged raucous acts of vandalism at schools. To participate in the challenge, students and TikTok users shattered mirrors, stole soap dispensers, fire alarms and football field turf, and intentionally clogged toilets, all while filming the antics to post on TikTok.

Patch editors Megan VerHelst and Alex Newman contributed to this report.