Martinez police placed Alhambra High School in Martinez on lockdown to conduct a "safety search" around 11 a.m. this morning according to local news site Claycord.com. School officials later reported the lockdown was initiated after a teacher found an empty handgun case on school grounds. The search concluded just before 1 p.m. this afternoon when authorities failed to find any weapons. Today's lockdown comes after the school received a threatening email from an anonymous source last Thursday.

The school remained open last Friday despite the threatening email, although the Martinez Patch reports that school attendance that day was down roughly 40% after parents received robo-calls about the threats. Authorities have yet to provide any details on the suspicious electronic correspondance from last week while they attempt to track down the culprit. No word yet on whether today's lockdown appears to be related to last week's threats.

[Claycord]
[SJ Merc]
[Martinez Patch]
[Alahambra High]