Callous pranksters terrorized New York City schools by calling in a flood of bomb threats following the World Trade Center attacks, police crime stats show.
The NYPD reported 307 bomb scares from July through December of last year, up from 117 threats logged during the same six-month period in 2000.
That’s a 162 percent increase. Most of the calls were made post-Sept. 11.
The false threats wreaked havoc on edgy students and staff – already reeling from the Twin Towers collapse – who were forced to evacuate their school buildings during the weeks following the WTC terror attacks.
And the hoaxers stretched the manpower of the NYPD, which dispatched cops to respond to the false threats.
“Unfortunately, people took advantage of the situation,” said Ray Diaz, chief of the NYPD’s School Safety Division. “These threats really caused a lot of grief.”
Diaz noted that a student was nabbed after calling in seven bomb threats at Port Richmond HS on Staten Island. A man in Queens also was busted for calling in phony bomb threats to IS 59 in Springfield Gardens from a nearby pay phone.
He noted it’s a felony to report fake bomb threats.
Overall, reports of crimes plunged 15 percent since September – despite the bomb scares – compared to the same three-month period in 2000. There were 2,000 incidents from September through December last year, down from 2,350 the previous year.
And incidents reported for the seven most serious crimes dropped 5 percent, to 365 from 384. These categories include assault, burglary, grand larceny, murder, rape and robbery.
For example, the NYPD reported 74 robberies, down from 110. There were five fewer felony assaults.
Also, reports of gang-related crimes at or near schools plummeted 57 percent from January through October, to 203 from 468 the prior year.
The reductions contrasted with the summer-school session in July and August, where reports of serious crimes were up 41 percent, to 109 from 77 during the prior year. And overall crime was up 38 percent during the summer, with 294 incidents reported compared to 213.
Diaz attributed some of the increase to a larger summer-school program with more students.
Still, the number of reported weapons in schools fell 32 percent, to 995 from 1,457 – even when including the summer-school program.
Diaz stressed violent crimes are down.
“We had no homicides, no rapes and weapons possession, and gang incidents are significantly down,” he said.
He did admit property crimes are up – burglaries increased 45 percent, and grand larceny is up 10 percent.
SCHOOL CRIMES
Category 2001 2000 %Change
Bomb threats 307 117 +162
Arson/Explosion 7 4 +75
Burglary 118 81 +46
Assault (misdemeanor) 364 291 +25
Grand Larceny 157 143 +10
Homicide 0 0 0
Assault (felony) 114 116 -1.7
Criminal Posession 9 10 -10
Controlled Substance
Robbery 85 118 -28
Weapons 995 1457 -32(includes pocket knife,razor, nail clipper, etc)
Criminal Sale Controlled Substance 0 1 -100
Rape 0 3 -100
Source: NYP School Safety Division