Federal employee taken into custody following "active shooter hoax" at NJ's largest military base

TRENTON, N.J. — A federal government employee was taken into custody Tuesday following an “active shooter hoax” that plunged New Jersey’s largest military base into lockdown earlier in the day, according to the state’s acting U.S. attorney, Alina Habba.

In a social media post Tuesday night, Habba said the civilian employee — who has not been named — was in custody for “conveying false information regarding an active shooter at Joint Base McGuire.”

That sprawling base, among the nation's largest military installations, was placed under lockdown Tuesday morning.

A statement on the base's Facebook page urged all personnel to shelter in place. The statement did not describe the nature of the threat. The lockdown was lifted just before noon, a little under an hour after it was announced.

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