Clovis West target of suspected bomb hoax, Fresno police say. It’s only 2nd day of school
A bomb threat police said they suspect is yet another hoax at Clovis West came in Tuesday, Fresno police confirmed.
A caller around 1 p.m. said there were bombs on campus set to go off about the time students get out of class — though police said the call was similar to many false reports that came in last school year, Lt. Bill Dooley said.
Tuesday was the second day of the school year for Clovis Unified School District campuses.
“We expected this to happen,” Dooley said.
The school was not placed on lockdown, but students were told to shelter in place while police searched the campus as a precaution, he said
The campus received several mock bomb calls — often termed “swatting” — during the winter, including four in the same week.
Like those calls, the number Tuesday appeared to originate from a foreign phone, making it more difficult to track down, police said.
Swatting calls are not uncommon across the nation.
The district issued a statement Tuesday afternoon:
“The actions of a single individual to undermine the well-being and peace of mind of our students, parents and staff by trying to cause fear is reprehensible,” the statement said. “Anyone working with ill intent toward us must not be allowed to deter us from our priority which is educating our students in a safe environment and equipping them to succeed in life. We encourage anyone with information that could be helpful to law enforcement in identifying and holding this person accountable to contact Fresno Police Department.”
This story was originally published August 22, 2023 at 1:47 PM.
