An investigation revealed that the threat of bodily harm against City of Gillette Mayor Tom Murphy was nothing more than a misconstrued joke from a friend, according to Gillette Police Lieutenant Brent Wasson.

The mayor told Basin Radio Network Tuesday that he and his wife received a threatening phone call over the weekend.  As a precaution, more uniformed police officers than normal attended Monday evening’s city council meeting.

Following the meeting, Murphy said rather than take any chances, they were playing it safe.

"I would like to thank the Police Department for their quick and thorough investigation,” Mayor Murphy said in a statement released Wednesday morning.  “While it is easy to judge an event like this in hindsight, I find it reassuring that Chief Hloucal and his staff responded accordingly.  My family and I are grateful and appreciative of their efforts.”

Murphy described the last few days as a “roller-coaster ride” and he’s happy that it has been resolved.

“What's unfortunate with all of this, is that the work of the City Council and City Staff was over-shadowed this week by these events,” Murphy continued.  “The City Council approved a new set of Financial Operating Policies; we amended the resolution to continue to plow residential streets based on citizen feedback; and a new ordinance that covers net metering passed second reading.”

Wasson says no charges are pending in this case.