A third wave of telephoned bomb threats were called in to at least 17 Jewish community centers on Tuesday in nine states, this time including one that was west of the Mississippi River.
Among those sites that were evacuated into the freezing cold weather, with program participants sent home during the day, were:
– Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center in La Jolla, and the JCC in San Diego, California;
– Boulder Jewish Community Center in Boulder, Colorado;
– I.J. & Jeanne Wagner Jewish Community Center in Salt Lake City, Utah;
– JCC Apachi Day Camp in Lake County, Chicago, Illinois;
– JCC in Sylvania Township near Toledo, Ohio;
– Harry & Rose Samson Family Jewish Community Center in Whitefish Bay and Milwaukee, Wisconsin;
– Sidney Albert Albany Jewish Community Center in Albany, the JCC in Vestal, and two bomb threats at the JCC in Syracuse, NY, according to Syracuse.com;
– JCC MetroWest in West Orange, New Jersey; and
– JCC of Greater New Haven in Woodbridge, Connecticut.
“The FBI and the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division are investigating possible civil rights violations in connection with threats to Jewish Community Centers across the country,” said a prepared statement from the FBI.
“The FBI will collect all available facts and evidence, and will ensure this matter is investigated in a fair, thorough, and impartial manner. As this is matter is ongoing, we are not able to comment further at this time.”
Two weeks ago, on January 18, some 30 JCCs in 17 states were evacuated due to fake bomb threats, and on January 9, the same thing happened in 16 JCCs in nine states.
New York State Police reached out to Jewish institutions in central and upstate regions to ensure they had an evacuation plan in place, according to TWC News.