LINCOLN, Neb. – Officials at Lincoln East High School suspended a student and called the police after he allegedly called a girl wearing a hijab a terrorist.

A 16-year-old female student was wearing the Muslim head-cover at Lincoln East High School when she allegedly overheard a student say, “Look, there’s a terrorist,” Lincoln Police Office Katie Flood told the Lincoln Journal Star.

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Flood said another witness confirmed the girl’s claim.

Police and school officials immediately tracked down the 18-year-old male student, suspended him, and referred him to student services, according to the news site.

School officials refused to discuss the incident, but told the Journal Star a student can be suspended for up to a week. Afterwards, students either return to school, are reassigned to another school, have their suspension extended for up to 20 days, or face expulsion, depending on the circumstances. It’s unclear whether the student was charged with a hate crime.

“It appears to be an isolated incident but of course we are looking into this issue,” Lincoln East principal Sue Cassata told the Journal Star in an email. “We are vigilant about creating a positive atmosphere at East High and will not tolerate inappropriate behavior.”

The vast majority of those who posted comments about the issue online believe school officials overreacted by suspending the student and likely didn’t need to call the police.

“Why were the police even called?” Joshua LanOpants wrote. “Sounds to me like the Muslim student is a huge coward that can’t stand up for themselves.”

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“Wow, this is crazy because I’m 13 (years old) and two people at my school kept putting notes in my locker threatening me and telling me to kill myself because I’m not in their crowd,” Aiyana Finley wrote. “And they were identified and nothing happened to them. So yea …”

“Wow, talk about paranoia on being pc,” LennyandLaverne Eugene posted.

“I think suspension was excessive,” Jan Muldoon wrote. “We need to make up our minds one way or another. When a high school student assaults someone physically or robs a grocery store, we expect leniency because of their age. But then a word is uttered has racial overtones we freak out and want to suspend him. What good is that doing anyone.”

“My son went to East, just graduated, and he’s like why is this news?” Bruce Eigsti added. “People get suspended every day from school and no news. Also, if the student called a white or Hispanic or black person a terrorist nothing is said and not on the news.”

“Unless some real harm was done, people need to get over it, or they will find life a never-ending challenge,” Steven W. Holman wrote. “I feel slighted everyday by people for one reason or another; somebody cuts me off in traffic as if I didn’t exist, someone throws litter on my yard, someone blasts loud music from their car to the point where my car is rattling, someone cuts in front of me in line, someone calls me a racist simply because I’m a white male. The list goes on. Do I call the police over it? Get real. If this is the worst thing that ever happens to this girl, I’d trade places with her in a second.”

Police told KETV the incident at Lincoln East was the first anti-Muslim incident reported so far this year.

In Omaha, however, the FBI is investigating vandalism at the Islamic Center of Omaha in the wake of the Paris ISIS attacks. Someone apparently spray painted an Eiffel Tower peace symbol on a wall outside of the building, the third “hate crime” at the Center in recent months, the Journal Star reports.