A Hamilton College student has been charged in connection with an active shooter threat that was posted on social media over the weekend. The alleged threat sent the college into "shelter in place" mode for a number of hours on Sunday.

New York State Police said Peter Howard III, of Louisville, Kentucky, a member of the Class of 2025, made the threat in an online post.

Howard, 20, is charged with making a threat of mass harm following an alleged online threat that led safety officials to believe there could be an active shooter situation on the campus. He was released on an appearance ticket and is scheduled to be back in court next month.

Law enforcement swept the campus and determined there was no threat.

Hamilton College Campus Safety Director Francis Coots said the Kirner-Johnson (K.J.) Building, a classroom building on campus, was the focus of an intense investigation.

“We received a screenshot of a social media posting that was placed on a social media platform called Jodel, J-O-D-E-L. It's a relatively minor social media platform. It's an anonymous platform. And in that that posting, it said that the author had stated he was going to shoot up K.J.," said Coots.

Coots said the campus immediately sheltered in place, and law enforcement were contacted and responded. Given the specifics of the threat, Coots said he did not consider the situation to be like recent swatting situations.

Kirner-Johnson and other buildings were searched, which lasted about three hours. After everything was secure, the shelter in place was lifted.

“The state police then took over the criminal investigation of that, and with the cooperation of our community, as well as working with Jodel, we were able to identify the perpetrator," said Coots.

Coots said the suspect was on campus when he was taken into custody, and added that no weapons were found in his room. Normal activities resumed Monday, but some students were shaken up.

“Probably one of the best comments I heard was from a student, and he said, ‘I know the person who did this and I feel bad that he's in a situation like this. But it really upsets me when I'm in a custodial closet for three hours and I can't do anything, I'm wondering what's going on and am I going to be safe? And when law enforcement enters a building like that and they make me put my hands in the air, and they pat me down to ensure that the entire building is safe. It upsets me a great deal,’" said Coots.

Howard has been placed on interim suspension as college performs an internal investigation. He’s scheduled to appear in court on May 2.