Bomb threat emails spark panic at 200 schools in West Bengal
Times of India | 9 April 2024
KOLKATA: Around 200 govt and private schools in Kolkata and the suburbs received an email early Monday, warning that bombs had been placed in their premises and large-scale destruction had been planned.
“This is a message to everyone. There are bombs planted inside “of the” classrooms. The bombs are set to go off tomorrow morning, when there are kids inside “of the” schools.Our mission is to leave as many people as possible in a pool of blood. This attack is caused by 2 terrorists named Ching and Doll. (sic),” the email read.
The mails landed between 12.15am to 12.25am, hours before the first weekday when all city schools were set to open after the exam period. “We are registering a suo motu case for a hoax bomb threat. The cyber team has been asked to trace the IP,” additional CP(I) Murlidhar Sharma said.
Most of these schools are in south Kolkata, especially Behala, while some are in nearby districts, including Siliguri. Several of the institutions contacted either Lalbazar or local police stations to report the threat email. Local cops later visited the schools for an audit, sources said.
While a probe is underway to determine the sender with the Kolkata Police STF and cyber cell contacting several internet service providers, primary investigation indicated that the email might be fake. “This seems more than just a prank, rather a shortcut to stay in some sort of news,” said a police source.
Cops said the email was similar to the one received on Jan 5 that led to the shutdown of several tourist spots in the city. Pertinently, a month ago, 13 Chennai schools received similar bomb threats.