MSU

A Phone Number With a History: MSU's Thursday Night Bomb Hoax and the Alert That Never Came

Thursday, March 7, 2024MIbomb threatemergency notificationmedium 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 the evening of March 7, 2024, Michigan State University received a hoax phone call reporting a bomb and weapons threat targeting the Main Library, Brody neighborhood, Hannah Administration Building, and Abbot Hall. MSU Police recognized the number as one with a history of hoax calls and, in coordination with the FBI, confirmed the threat was not credible. No campus-wide alert was sent, drawing criticism from students who noticed heavy police activity.

Alerts: 1
Response: —
Killed: —
Injured: —

Institution

Michigan State University

Public R1 · MI

~50,000 studentsMSU Alert

Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

1 message in sequence

Some alert texts below are approximate reconstructions from news coverage, not confirmed verbatim transcripts. Reconstructed texts are shown in italic with a dashed border. Verified verbatim texts have a solid border and are marked accordingly.

INITIAL ALERTFacebookLate evening on March 7, 2024, Eastern Time

Approximate reconstructionMSU Police and Public Safety Facebook post (opening matches the post slug; full text not independently reproduced by news outlets)313 chars

Campus Alert: A bomb threat was called in to police central dispatch to report a bomb and weapons at the Main Library, Brody Neighborhood, Hannah Administration Building, and Abbot Hall. MSU police are investigating. The call has been confirmed by MSU PD and the FBI as a hoax. There is no known threat to campus.

This text has been reconstructed from news coverage and may not reflect the exact original wording.

Closely tracks the MSU Police and Public Safety Facebook post of March 7, 2024, whose URL slug confirms the 'Campus Alert: A bomb threat was called in to police central dispatch to report a bomb and...' opening; remaining wording not word-for-word verified

No alert was sent through the MSU Alert emergency notification system; the information was shared only via social media after students noticed heavy police presence

Detroit News reported MSU Police recognized the calling number as one previously associated with hoax calls

Context

Background

On the evening of March 7, 2024, a hoax phone call was made to police central dispatch reporting a bomb and weapons threat at four major campus locations: the Main Library, Brody neighborhood, Hannah Administration Building, and Abbot Hall. MSU Police and the FBI quickly determined the call was not credible because the phone number had a documented history of making hoax calls. No campus-wide alert was sent through the MSU Alert system. However, students who witnessed the heavy police presence on campus were alarmed, and MSU Police eventually posted to social media to inform the public that the threat was a hoax. The incident came just over a year after the February 13, 2023 mass shooting at Berkey Hall that killed three students and wounded five others, making the lack of an emergency alert especially concerning to the campus community. Students later called on the university to expand its emergency alert criteria.

Analysis

Key Findings

MSU Police chose not to send a campus-wide alert because the calling number had a known history of hoax calls

The decision drew criticism from students who were alarmed by the heavy police presence without explanation, especially given the February 2023 mass shooting

The incident prompted a broader conversation about MSU's emergency alert criteria and transparency

Outcome

The threat was confirmed as a hoax by MSU Police and the FBI. No explosive devices or weapons were found. No campus-wide alert was issued because the phone number had a known history of hoax calls.

Provenance

Sources

Student Paper
MSU police answer to hoax bomb, weapons threat on campus Thursday night (The State News)
statenews.com
News
Bomb, weapons threat called in to MSU found to be hoax, police say (Detroit News)
detroitnews.com
Official
University Statement on False Bomb Threat (MSU Today)
msu.edu
Student Paper
Should MSU expand its emergency alert system? Students weigh in (The State News)
statenews.com

Alert Sequence

Background

Key Findings

Sources

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