Wording not preserved
A initial alert message is documented at this point in the sequence, but its exact wording is not preserved in the public record. The public edition displays only confirmed alert text.
Rutgers
Overnight bomb threat against multiple buildings determined to be a swatting call
AI-generated · every claim is source-linkedConfirmed HoaxDetermined to be a hoax. The institutional response is documented because it reveals how the alert system performed under a perceived real threat.
In the early morning hours of April 6, 2023, Rutgers University–New Brunswick received bomb threat calls threatening several buildings on the College Avenue campus. A text and email alert was sent at 3:40 AM EDT directing the community to shelter in place. RUPD and New Brunswick Police conducted a thorough sweep and determined the threat was not credible, consistent with a swatting incident.
- Alerts
- 2
- Response
- —
- Killed
- —
- Injured
- —
~51,000 studentsRU Alert
Official alert policy
Read when and how Rutgers says it will use RU-ALERT / Emergency Notification System (ENS): summarized, quoted, and analyzed.
Documented Timeline
Alert Sequence
2 messages in sequence · 1 verified verbatim
Some messages in this sequence are documented (their existence, timing, and channel are sourced) but their exact wording is not preserved in the public record. Those entries appear as placeholders; only confirmed text is displayed.
Verified verbatimPatch (New Brunswick) and News 12 New Jersey both quoted the 5:44 a.m. RU Alert lifting message verbatim125 chars
The Rutgers University New Brunswick/Piscataway Campuses have been deemed safe. Please return to normal operating procedures.
Sent at 5:44 a.m. EDT on April 6, 2023 via text and email, approximately 2 hours after the initial 3:40 a.m. EDT shelter-in-place alert
The terse all-clear named both the New Brunswick and Piscataway campuses but did not use the words 'hoax' or 'swatting', those characterizations came in a separate RUPD press release later that morning
Multiple news outlets quoted this exact construction, supporting it as the verbatim text from the official RU Alert
Context
Background
In the early morning hours of April 6, 2023, Rutgers University–New Brunswick received bomb threat calls threatening several buildings on the College Avenue campus. An alert was sent via text and email at 3:40 AM EDT directing the community to shelter in place. CBS New York reported that RUPD and New Brunswick Police conducted a thorough sweep and deemed the campus safe. News 12 New Jersey confirmed the threat was determined to be not credible and likely a swatting incident. Patch provided New Brunswick community coverage. The incident occurred during the same spring 2023 wave of campus swatting calls that targeted institutions across the Northeast.
Analysis
Key Findings
The 3:40 AM EDT on April 6, 2023 timing of the threat required alerting a 51,000-student campus in the middle of the night, one of the largest campuses to experience a nocturnal bomb threat
The all-clear explicitly identified the incident as consistent with a swatting call, which helps educate the community about this growing threat category
The incident targeted the College Avenue campus, Rutgers' historic center and most student-dense area
Outcome
The threat was determined to be a swatting call. No explosive devices were found. The campus was deemed safe after a thorough sweep by RUPD and New Brunswick Police.
Provenance
Sources
- News
- News
- News
- News
Cite this case
Campus Alert Archive. "Rutgers University–New Brunswick: Overnight bomb threat against multiple buildings determined to be a swatting call." Incident of April 6, 2023. Added April 2026; last updated July 2026. https://campusalertarchive.com/case/rutgers-university-bomb-threat-2023-04-06/
Alert text quoted on this page remains the work of the issuing institution; the archive is a secondary source.
Tags
bomb-threatswattingnew-jerseyearly-morningcollege-avenueshelter-in-place51000-studentsHoax
Added April 2026Updated July 2026Via ingestion