{
  "id": "2023-04-06-rutgers-university-bomb-threat",
  "slug": "rutgers-university-bomb-threat-2023-04-06",
  "institution": {
    "name": "Rutgers University–New Brunswick",
    "shortName": "Rutgers",
    "state": "NJ",
    "type": "public-r1",
    "alertSystemName": "RU Alert",
    "enrollment": 51000
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2023-04-06",
    "type": "bomb-threat",
    "cleryCategory": "emergency-notification",
    "resolution": "confirmed-hoax",
    "headline": "Overnight bomb threat against multiple buildings determined to be a swatting call",
    "headlinePublic": "Overnight bomb threat against multiple buildings determined to be a swatting call",
    "summary": "In the early morning hours of April 6, 2023, [Rutgers University–New Brunswick received bomb threat calls](https://nj1015.com/bomb-threat-puts-rutgers-university-on-shelter-in-place-mode/) 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](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/rutgers-bomb-threat-new-brunswick-campus/) conducted a thorough sweep and [determined the threat was not credible](https://newjersey.news12.com/police-rutgers-university-in-new-brunswick-deemed-safe-after-bomb-threat-likely-a-swatting-incident/), consistent with a swatting incident.",
    "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."
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestamp": "2023-04-06T03:40:00-04:00",
      "channel": "multi-channel",
      "verbatimText": "",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": false,
      "sourceDescription": "Reconstructed from NJ 101.5, CBS New York, and News 12 New Jersey reporting",
      "annotations": []
    },
    {
      "sequence": 2,
      "type": "all-clear",
      "timestamp": "2023-04-06T05:44:00-04:00",
      "channel": "multi-channel",
      "verbatimText": "The Rutgers University New Brunswick/Piscataway Campuses have been deemed safe. Please return to normal operating procedures.",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://patch.com/new-jersey/newbrunswick/rutgers-bomb-threat-under-investigation-thursday-police",
      "sourceDescription": "Patch (New Brunswick) and News 12 New Jersey both quoted the 5:44 a.m. RU Alert lifting message verbatim",
      "annotations": [
        "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"
      ],
      "characterCount": 125
    }
  ],
  "context": "In the early morning hours of April 6, 2023, [Rutgers University–New Brunswick received bomb threat calls](https://nj1015.com/bomb-threat-puts-rutgers-university-on-shelter-in-place-mode/) 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](https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/rutgers-bomb-threat-new-brunswick-campus/) that RUPD and New Brunswick Police conducted a thorough sweep and deemed the campus safe. [News 12 New Jersey](https://newjersey.news12.com/police-rutgers-university-in-new-brunswick-deemed-safe-after-bomb-threat-likely-a-swatting-incident/) confirmed the threat was determined to be not credible and likely a swatting incident. [Patch](https://patch.com/new-jersey/newbrunswick/rutgers-bomb-threat-under-investigation-thursday-police) provided New Brunswick community coverage. The incident occurred during the same spring 2023 wave of campus swatting calls that targeted institutions across the Northeast.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "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"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Bomb threat puts Rutgers University on shelter-in-place mode (NJ 101.5)",
      "url": "https://nj1015.com/bomb-threat-puts-rutgers-university-on-shelter-in-place-mode/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Rutgers University–New Brunswick campus deemed safe after bomb threat (CBS New York)",
      "url": "https://www.cbsnews.com/newyork/news/rutgers-bomb-threat-new-brunswick-campus/",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Rutgers deemed safe after bomb threat, likely a swatting incident (News 12 NJ)",
      "url": "https://newjersey.news12.com/police-rutgers-university-in-new-brunswick-deemed-safe-after-bomb-threat-likely-a-swatting-incident",
      "type": "local-media"
    },
    {
      "title": "Rutgers Bomb Threat Under Investigation (Patch)",
      "url": "https://patch.com/new-jersey/newbrunswick/rutgers-bomb-threat-under-investigation-thursday-police",
      "type": "local-media"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "medium",
  "tags": [
    "bomb-threat",
    "swatting",
    "new-jersey",
    "early-morning",
    "college-avenue",
    "shelter-in-place",
    "51000-students"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-04-04",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-07-16",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}