Suspicious vehicle reported, prompts school to issue alert

Most recent update: 5:30 p.m. Wednesday.

Reports of a suspicious vehicle triggered a school-district-wide alert on Wednesday afternoon in Mitchell.

Mitchell Detective Lt. Don Everson said a man in a green Jeep stopped beside three children who were walking home from Gertie Belle Rogers Elementary School.

“He asked them if they wanted a ride home. The children refused the ride and the subject left,” Everson said.

The incident is being treated as a suspicious person report, he said.

“We don’t know at this time if it’s a case of someone simply wanting to help kids walking home in the cold, or something more,” Everson said.

Mitchell Superintendent of Schools Joe Graves issued district-wide e-mail and text alerts to parents around 4:15 p.m. requesting that they check on the whereabouts of their children.

Everson asked anyone with information regarding the incident to call Mitchell Police at (605) 995-8400.

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