photo by: Kim Callahan/Journal-World

A Lawrence Police Department patrol vehicle is pictured June 28, 2022.

A manhunt late Thursday brought half the on-duty police force, drones and assistance from the Douglas County Sheriff’s office to the 100 block of Yorkshire, but it was all part of a childhood hoax, according a social media post Saturday from the Lawrence Police Department.

According to the post, police received a call about 10:30 p.m. Thursday from children who said a man had broken into their house and threatened them before a boy hit him with a baseball bat, causing him to run away. Officers scoured the neighborhood but found no suspect. They returned Friday when the children called to say he had returned.

When no one was found, the police took the children to headquarters and questioned them separately, where they learned the calls had been a hoax. Detectives talked to the children about the severity of their actions and the importance of truthfulness and did not request criminal charges, the post said.