Per WRAL:
The report of a gunman that led to a lockdown at Appalachian State University was a hoax and the student who called police could be charged with filing a false report, police said Tuesday.
Matthew Haney, a 22-year-old English major from Durham, admitted to making up the report while he was being questioned Tuesday morning….
“The motive, generally speaking, was he maintains he found his door damaged when he came home,” said Matt Stevens, an investigator with the Boone Police Department. “But he admits there was no man or armed man. He went to report it to his management and believed he would be held responsible. It sort of snowballed.”