Three Jewish community centers on Staten Island were evacuated Monday morning after one of them received a bomb threat, police said.
The center at 1446 Manor Rd. received a call about an explosive device at about 10 a.m., police said. That community center and two others on Staten Island were evacuated and searched, they said.
No device was found at any of the centers, police said.
The Staten Island JCC is among a number of locations to reportedly receive threats Monday. Other locations include Long Island, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Indiana, Alabama, Missouri, North Carolina and Florida.
This is the fifth time Jewish centers have been targeted nationwide this year. The New York-based JCC Association of North America told NBC New York that on Jan. 9, centers were threatened in nine states, then another series of threats were received against 28 centers in 17 states nine days later.
The most recent incidents prior to Monday morning were received a week ago, when media reports said 10 centers were evacuated following calls.
New York politicians, including Mayor Bill de Blasio, Gov. Andrew Cuomo and Rep. Dan Donovan, who represents Staten Island, issued statements about the threats.
“Make no mistake: these reprehensible and cowardly attacks are not limited to the Jewish community. They are assaults on all New Yorkers and I vow that we will do everything in our power to catch those responsible for this wave of hate crimes,” Cuomo said.
President Donald Trump last week denounced the threats as “horrible,” his first public forceful statement against anti-Semitism. In condemning the threats, Trump called them “painful reminders” of lingering prejudice and evil.
With Newsday
