St. Paul police have cleared the area around Cretin-Derham Hall High School after investigating a report that a person was seen in the area with a gun.

Schools in the Highland Park neighborhood, including Cretin and Holy Spirit grade school, went into lockdown as a precaution after a Cretin student told school officials he thought he had seen a person get out of a nearby car with a gun, Cretin President Richard Engler said.

The incident was reported about 8:40 a.m., Engler said.

Police arrived and checked the high school campus but found nothing. The lockdown has been lifted and the school day is proceeding normally, Engler said.

"We're not sure anything existed at this point, frankly," he said.

Police confirmed via Twitter that "this is not a school issue."

Cretin-Derham Hall is at the corner of Hamline and Randolph Avenues in St. Paul.

KEVIN DUCHSCHERE