JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Neighbors are waiting on answers after a massive police presence in the Lakewood area all day yesterday lasted into the night. The same police presence sent a school and a church into lockdown.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office confirmed it was working an investigation near San Jose Blvd and Arcadia Drive.
Several people also reported seeing dive teams in the creek nearby and a helicopter above.
Scene is all clear, but questions linger. Neighbors told First Coast News police returned and continued the search in the dark.
"We heard the helicopters and all of a sudden had the officers knocking on our doors," Neighbor Jimmy Rosado said. "There were three officers and their dogs. They asked us to open the gate, they had the dogs check back and forth. They left and went down the neighborhoods here and there."
In the daytime, a helicopter circled the air above the area and at least three roads were closed to traffic during the search. Neighbors said it was around 9:00 a.m. when SWAT units, police cars and search dogs showed up.
Officers and K-9 units were seen searching through back yards. According to neighbors, police were looking for a person of interest.
One neighbor said she walked outside to at least nine police units in front of her house.
There are no reports of injuries from neighbors, the preschool or the church that was on lockdown.
Earlier in the day, JSO Public Information Officer Christian Hancock said that patrol units responded to call for service of a reported aggravated battery.
"However, at last I checked, nothing was located that substantiated the report," he said.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office has not released information to the press at this time about why JSO was in the area late into the night. First Coast News also contacted the agency by phone and email and asked if the cases are connected and if anything was found in any of these searches. The sheriff's office has also not answered those questions.