Campus Alert Archive
BU

Two Calls, Two Ends of Comm Ave: BU Alert Goes Out at 8 PM as the April 2023 Swatting Wave Reaches Boston

MAswattingemergency notificationhigh confidence
Confirmed HoaxDetermined to be a hoax. The institutional response is documented because it reveals how the alert system performed under a perceived real threat.

On April 9, 2023, Boston University Police received two simultaneous calls reporting active shooters at opposite ends of campus — 855 Commonwealth Avenue (College of Fine Arts) and 233 Bay State Road (admissions office). BUPD issued a BU Alert at approximately 8:00 PM and confirmed within 40 minutes there was no threat. Just six days after the Harvard Leverett swatting, BU became part of the rapid April 2023 wave.

Alerts
2
Response
—
Killed
0
Injured
0
Institution
Boston University
Private R1 · MA
~37,000 studentsBU Alert
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

2 messages in sequence · 2 verified verbatim

INITIAL ALERTTwitter/X
Verified verbatimBU Today (official) quoting the @BUPolice Twitter/X post verbatim218 chars
Two calls for an active shooter have been received by BU Police in the area of 855 Commonwealth Ave and 233 Bay State Road. Nothing has been discovered at this time, but there is a heavy police presence in these areas.
Posted on @BUPolice's official Twitter/X account around 8:00 PM EDT on April 9, 2023 — the public-facing channel BU used in parallel with the BU Alert SMS
Notable that the alert says 'Nothing has been discovered at this time' rather than directing students to shelter in place — BU's careful language indicates police were still verifying the threat
Names both 855 Commonwealth Avenue (College of Fine Arts) and 233 Bay State Road (admissions office) as the reported shooter locations
The two-location framing forced BUPD to split resources during the initial response
The BU Alert went out around 8:00 PM EDT, approximately 30-40 minutes faster than the Pitt response two days later
ALL CLEARSMS
Verified verbatimBU Alert update issued just before 8:50 PM EDT, quoted in BU Today209 chars
A short time ago, BUPD received several calls for an active shooter situation at multiple locations. Although we are still investigating, at this time we are confident that there is no threat to our community.
BUPD issued this update just before 8:50 PM EDT, approximately 50 minutes after the initial alert
Note the careful language: 'we are confident that there is no threat' rather than a definitive 'all clear' — BU officials chose hedged language while investigation continued
The 50-minute resolution time was significantly faster than the 82-minute Pitt response two days later, which became a national criticism point
Context

Background

On the evening of April 9, 2023 — Easter Sunday — Boston University Police received two simultaneous calls reporting active shooters at opposite ends of the Charles River campus. One call reported a shooter at 855 Commonwealth Avenue, where the College of Fine Arts is located. The other reported a shooter at 233 Bay State Road, the admissions office. BUPD issued a BU Alert around 8:00 PM EDT and dispatched officers to both locations. Within 40 minutes, BU was confident there was no threat, and just before 8:50 PM, the university issued an update with carefully hedged language: 'although we are still investigating, at this time we are confident that there is no threat to our community.' The incident was part of the April 4-9 wave that hit at least 10 universities — Clemson, the University of Florida, Boston University, Harvard, Cornell, the University of Pittsburgh, Rutgers, the University of Oklahoma, Wake Forest, and Middlebury — in a single week. BU's relatively fast response (50 minutes from initial call to all-clear) compared favorably to Pittsburgh's 82-minute alert delay the following Monday, which became a flashpoint for national criticism. The two-location nature of the calls foreshadowed the tactic Purgatory swatters would use in August 2025 — multiple coordinated calls designed to maximize police confusion.
Analysis

Key Findings

BU's two simultaneous calls at opposite ends of campus represented a more sophisticated swatting tactic than single-location hoaxes
The 50-minute resolution time was significantly faster than the Pitt 82-minute response two days later
BU used carefully hedged language ('we are confident there is no threat') rather than a definitive all-clear
The College of Fine Arts and admissions office were strategic targets — public-facing buildings on opposite ends of campus
The incident happened on Easter Sunday evening, with reduced campus population, possibly affecting response logistics
Outcome
No injuries occurred. BUPD confirmed no active threat by 8:40 PM EDT and issued an all-clear update before 8:50 PM. The two simultaneous hoax calls at opposite ends of campus suggested deliberate effort to maximize police confusion. The incident was part of the April 4-9, 2023 swatting wave hitting at least 10 universities.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Official
    Making Sense of 'Swatting' Hoax That Hit BU Sunday Night (BU Today)
    bu.edu
  2. News
    Hoax shooting calls reported at Boston University (Boston.com)
    boston.com
  3. Student Paper
    BUPD responds to hoax shooting at spots on campus (Daily Free Press)
    dailyfreepress.com
  4. News
    Boston University swatted with call about 'active shooter' (Universal Hub)
    universalhub.com
  5. News
    Wave of swatting incidents has college students on edge (NBC Boston)
    nbcboston.com
Tags
swattingboston-universitymassachusettsapril-2023-swatting-wavetwo-location-hoaxcommonwealth-avenuecollege-of-fine-artsprivate-r1easter-sundayfast-responseHoax
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion