Connecticut Police Investigating After Antisemitic Bomb Threat Made to New Haven Jewish Center

Police in Woodbridge, Connecticut Police are searching for leads in the case of a bomb threat that forced members of the Jewish Community Center of Greater New Haven (JCC) to evacuate the building and suspend summer camp on Tuesday.

At around 10 a.m., a staffer at the center received a call that began with antisemitic comments and was followed by the threat, said JCC executive director Scott Cohen and Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven CEO Judy Alperin to the New Hampshire Register.

They said the staffer immediately told the Woodbridge Police Department, while the JCC building was evacuated, including those attending JCC Day Camps.

“While our year-round staff’s performance today was wonderful, many of them have experienced similar situations before,” Cohen and Alperin said. “But our camp staff team, several just graduating this year from camper to counselor, performed admirably.”

On Wednesday, Woodbridge Police Chief Frank Cappiello said there is no ongoing threat to the JCC, and that authorities were continuing their investigation.

“Our department is currently working with representative from the FBI and other local law enforcement agencies to identify the caller,” Cappiello told the Register. 

In a statement, Steven Ginsburg, Regional Director of the Anti-Defamation League in Connecticut, thanked law enforcement for their response to Tuesday’s bombs threat and asked “state and federal elected leaders to work together to help ensure the security and safety of Jewish communal institutions, including community centers and synagogues.”

“We are grateful to local and state law enforcement for their swift response to the threat at the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven,” he said, “Out of an abundance of caution the building was safely evacuated and, unfortunately, there seems to have been no imminent threat of harm to anyone.”

“We have seen bomb threats in the past against the New Haven JCC, and Connecticut passed a hate crimes law focused on addressing these threats. We hope law enforcement will bring those responsible for this incident to justice, and apply the hate crimes statute as appropriate.”