CSU has been the target of four false bomb threats in the last 10 months
Cleveland State has been the target of four false bomb threats in the last 10 months, with the latest coming July 8th, when a threat was called into the Cleveland Police Department Dispatch Center claiming a bomb was in the Student Center.
Cleveland State Police Department and other law enforcement agencies cleared the Student Center with no bombs found. CSU PD and other law enforcement agencies continue to investigate the false threats.
Student Center Threat – July 8th, 2022
The bomb threat that targeted the Student Center on July 8th came from a Canadian phone number, according to a police report. In the police report, the caller did identify himself.
According to Northeast Ohio Regional State Fusion Center, CSU was not the only university to receive threats, as Cincinnati State and Ohio State received similar bomb threats around the same time.
“Other Ohio universities received the same threat, therefore, the FBI is also investigating,” Beverly Pettrey, Acting Chief of Cleveland State Police Department, told The Cauldron.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation released a statement about the wave of bomb threats targeting colleges and universities across the country.
“The FBI is aware of bomb threats received by multiple colleges and universities,” read the statement. “The FBI takes all potential threats seriously, and we regularly work with our law enforcement partners to determine their credibility.”
Euclid Commons – Feb. 22nd, 2022
On Feb. 22nd, Euclid Commons became the third bomb threat the university had received in the last 10 months. The call is still under investigation by Cleveland State Police.
The caller was described as a male per a police report. At the time of the threat, CSU PD tracked the call from a landline on the fifth floor of Fenn Tower. They collected the phone and submitted it for DNA Analysis.
Pettrey told The Cauldron that the lab report came back on June 6th with a DNA profile entered into the CODIS database. Pettrey also said a match has not returned because “there is not a DNA match in the system at this time.”
Pettrey did not answer when asked if CSU PD has any other leads. When asked in March by The Cleveland Stater if there was any indication that suggested a student called in the threat, Pettrey said she could not comment.
Fenn Tower – Dec. 1st, 2021
On Dec. 1st, Fenn Tower became the first dorm and second bomb threat the university received in the last 10 months. The call is still under investigation by Cleveland State Police.
The caller was described as a female per a police report. After reviewing the phone logs, CSU PD traced the call from a landline on the 8th floor of Fenn Tower.
The phone was collected and sent in for a DNA test. CSU PD is still waiting for the results and has suspended the investigation until then, Pettrey told The Cauldron.
Cleveland-Marshall College of Law – Nov. 4th, 2021
On Nov. 4th, CSU’s Marshall College of Law became the first bomb threat the university received. CSU PD’s investigation led to the indictment of Selvin Lopez on Dec. 15th, 2021.
Lopez was indicted on the charge of inducing panic, a second-degree felony in Ohio. Lopez’s case number is CR-21-666042-A in the Cuyahoga County Court system.
His case is still moving through the Cuyahoga County Court, with his next pre-trial hearing scheduled for Sept. 14th.
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