Los Angeles school officials said they received an electronic threat that prompted them to close all of its more than 900 public schools. But the NYPD later said New York City schools got the same threat, and called it a “hoax” from a possible Homeland fan.
A sign at Hamilton High School is pictured reading "School Closed" in Los Angeles, California.
Jonathan Alcorn / Reuters
All Los Angeles public schools were closed Tuesday after the district received an emailed threat that officials in New York as well as California later called a "hoax," possibly from a fan of the Showtime hit Homeland.
Los Angeles Unified Supt. Ramon C. Cortines did not reveal specifically what the email contained, but said the decision to close down the second largest school district in the nation was not made lightly.
He also cited the recent terror attack in San Bernardino, which claimed the lives of 14 people.
"This is a rare threat — we get threats all the time," Cortines told reporters. "I think the circumstances in the neighboring San Bernardino, what has happened in the nation, what happened internationally, I as superintendent will not take the chance with the life of a student."
U.S. Rep. Adam Schiff, a member of the House intelligence committee who represents Burbank, California, said a preliminary assessment revealed the threat to be a hoax or "something designed to disrupt school districts in large cities."
Citing an school district official, Reuters reported that the email threat was sent to a school board member from an IP address in Frankfurt, Germany. L.A. Police Chief Charlie Beck later added that the email had been routed through an IP address in Germany, but was likely sent from an individual closer to Los Angeles.
And while Los Angeles officials cautioned that they were still vetting the threat, Beck said the author mentioned explosive devices, assault rifles, and "machine pistols."
Richard Vogel / AP
SOURCE: BuzzFeed
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