The Great Falls Police Department issued a statement today indicating that school resource officers have been taking complaints over the last few days regarding suspicious persons possible following students who are walking to and from school.

GFPD investigates these complaints and have not been able to determine any similarities in the suspect descriptions. If they had developed a consistent suspect or suspect vehicle description, GFPD would be sharing that information with the community, according to the release.

Right now, GFPD wants the community to be aware of the general complaints and ask the community to contact the police with information about any incidents.

The SROs have learned that many children who have been reporting suspicious circumstances to an adult, and instead of the adult contacting GFPD, the adults are posting on social media and the suspicious complaints are not reaching the police.

SROs are working with Great Falls Public Schools administrators to educate students on how to be careful and aware when they are walking to and from school, according to GFPD.

“We encourage you to speak with your children about being aware of their surroundings and always letting an adult know where they are or where they are going. We are asking the community to listen to your children and report suspicious behavior to the police,” according to the GFPD release. “Do not assume the police department is aware of personal social media posts. Again, personal social media can be a source of information, but it does not engage the police department and never takes the place of a criminal investigation.”

If a child reports a suspicious circumstance or behavior to you, contact the Great Falls Police Department at 406-727-7688 option 5 or call 911 to report any emergencies.