BROOKINGS A series of threatening calls caused South Dakota State University to issue a campus-wide alert on Tuesday before an investigation found the threats were ultimately not credible.
According to a release from SDSU, a campus phone received an anonymous threat via phone call around 10:30 a.m. More calls making non-specific threats followed and caused the university to send out a timely warning alert around 11 a.m.
An immediate investigation by various law enforcement agencies revealed the threats were likely a hoax, according to a statement from SDSU Chief of Police Tim Heaton.
After a thorough investigation by the University Police Department, the South Dakota Division of Criminal Investigation and other law enforcement agencies, it was determined that the threat was not substantiated, Heaton said. The call was generated from outside the state of South Dakota and directed to published phone numbers at SDSU. There was never a threat directed to a specific part of campus.
The safety and security of our campus is paramount and something that everyone throughout the university and UPD takes very seriously, Heatons statement continued. Dealing with situations like today are unfortunate, but it is certainly important to keep our students, faculty and staff aware of any potential threat. I would like to thank my officers and staff at UPD for their work today and the increased presence they provided on campus while we investigated the matter. They responded quickly to the threat and helped ensure our campus remained safe throughout.
We no longer consider this a threat to the university, Heaton concluded.
Daily life on campus continued as usual with an increased police presence and no classes were canceled.
The original warning from SDSU said in part Be aware of your surroundings, take personal precautions and if you see something contact university police at 605-688-5117.
Linehan is the Registers managing editor and welcomes comments at [email protected].
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