Several private schools in Kansas received unspecified threats last week. On the list is Emporia’s Sacred Heart Elementary.
Principal Curtis Simons says there was an anonymous call Thursday night. A bomb threat was included in a voicemail afterward. Simons says it became readily apparent the threat was not credible.
Simons says he heard the voicemail Friday morning and immediately reached out to the church pastor, Father Colin Haganey, as well as the Archdiocese of Kansas City, Kansas, and Emporia Police after the message. Officers came to the school to do an on-site investigation.
Nothing showed up on the school’s nine security cameras as part of the investigation. Simons says the school has developed a solid plan for instances like this.
Topeka Police officers are dealing with similar calls to “several area private schools” and are cooperating with the Federal Bureau of Investigation to determine the person or people responsible. Information about the scope of a local investigation, coordinated with another agency or not, is currently pending.
Archdiocese Superintendent Dr Vince Cascone says law enforcement continues to investigate and the archdiocese “is following their guidance closely.” Cascone also thanked school administrators and local law enforcement for their work as the investigation unfolds.
