Amid a spate of threat emails being sent to schools and educational institutions across the city, a school in Kandivali (West) also received a threatening email recently. Following the alert, police launched a thorough search operation on the school premises. However, no suspicious object was found during the inspection. Preliminary investigations have revealed that the email was sent from outside Mumbai.
The incident occurred on Friday when the Kandivali-based school received a threat email, prompting immediate police intervention. The Bomb Detection and Disposal Squad (BDDS) was deployed to inspect the premises, but the search yielded no explosive or suspicious materials. Police suspect the email could be a mischievous act meant to spread panic.
Local police and the Crime Branch are jointly investigating the case. Initial findings suggest that the email originated from outside Mumbai.
Notably, this is not an isolated incident. In the past two months, at least 11 international schools and educational institutions in Mumbai have received similar threat emails. Investigations have revealed that most of these emails were routed using VPNs based in Sweden, Australia, the United States, and Norway.
So far, five FIRs have been registered in connection with these threats. Among the institutions targeted are a reputed school in Dombivli and a prominent educational institute in Powai.
In the threatening emails, the sender has made references to Ajmal Kasab, the 26/11 Mumbai attacker, Afzal Guru, who was convicted in the Parliament attack case, and also cited the Hyderabad rape case. The emails threaten RDX blasts and bomb explosions. Interestingly, the language and content of all the emails have been strikingly similar, indicating the possibility of a single perpetrator or group behind the threats.
Investigators have also discovered the use of Outlook email IDs and VPNs not just from foreign countries but from Delhi as well in some cases.