Schools at the Bethlehem Central School District in Albany County continue to have an increased police and security presence following a series of anonymous threats in recent days.
Bethlehem Police Department Deputy Chief James Rexford says investigators are working feverishly to try and determine the source of repeated threatening phone calls that have disrupted the lives of students and families throughout the school district.
"We didn't get any additional calls since the last one, and we're just following the protocols now," Rexford said. "As the investigation continues, we pretty much have investigators with the Bethlehem Police working 16 hours a day on it, in addition to the New York State Police and the FBI, and they just, we're just following up on leads as they become available."
Superintendent Jody Monroe spoke at a press conference last week.
"As we work closely with the Bethlehem Police Department to address the threats made against our school district, we want to assure you that we are committed to keeping families informed as new information becomes available, without compromising the integrity of the investigation," said Monroe.
In a letter to the school community Sunday evening, Monroe said all schools would operate under a precautionary lockout and high school students would have their bags checked upon entry. No students were allowed outdoors during the school day and all visitors had to be screened through main entrances.
Monday afternoon a school official told WAMC that while there have been no additional threats, programs and after school activities were canceled out of "an abundance of caution." Away games for school sports teams were being played as scheduled.
Rexford believes the investigation will bear fruit, in time. "My kids are in the school district as well. And, you know, I field probably 40 phone calls a morning about, you know, 'are your kids going to school and stuff?' And in all honesty, the schools at this point are probably the safest they've ever been, with the additional patrols in the area and the addition of officers being assigned to the school, and I think the fact that the community is on a heightened awareness. So anything that does look suspicious around the school, we're going to get that call and we're going to, you know, address it immediately," said Rexford, adding that Google has reached out to the department, offering its assistance with any aspect of the case involving the internet.
The New York State Education Department responded to a request for comment via email, saying it is monitoring the situation and has been in touch with the district.
The district website says Bethlehem classrooms are not configured for remote learning, but updates will be communicated to families on a day-by-day basis if a hybrid approach is warranted.
Rexford says no arrests have been announced. "So it all depends on the age of the suspect doing. It also depends on the jurisdiction in which it happens. Unfortunately, when it comes to juveniles, if it turns out to be a juvenile, laws are a lot less for a juvenile offender. If it's an adult, and it happened to be in, say, New York State, we would charge them with a terroristic threat. And you know, they would face the criminal charges in the state level," Rexford said.
Rexford says federal charges could also be brought against the perpetrator.
Parents are urged to check the district website daily.
