ASU gives green light after investigation into bomb threats at library, student union | The Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Arkansas State University in Jonesboro reported that no “credible threat” was found on campus after police officers responded to bomb threats against the library and student union Saturday morning.

In a Facebook post about the bomb threats at 8:05 a.m., ASU said police and K-9 units were clearing the Dean B. Ellis Library and the Reng Student Union “so they could return to normal operations.”

“Over the past week, the Jonesboro E-911 center has received an unusually high number of reports of swatting, but in the name of campus safety, we take these threats very seriously,” ASU said in the post, referring to false alerts intended to trick police into coming to a specific address.

In a 9:19 a.m. message, ASU said police had issued the “ALL-SCEAR” signal for the union, but the library was still closed.

A 10:09 a.m. message said the library had also been evacuated and that the university was “currently resuming normal operations.”

“Thank you to the University Police, the Jonesboro Police and K-9 Unit, the Craighead County Sheriff’s Office, and the Counter Terrorism Unit for their quick response this morning,” ASU said in the statement.

In a message posted on ASU’s website shortly afterward, providing more details about the incident, the organization said an email had been sent overnight to “a number of employee email addresses claiming a threat had been made” against the library and the union.

“Early this morning, many of those employees forwarded the email to the University Police Department,” the message on the website said. “University Police have begun their response and have issued a notification to all users.”

“Despite the increasing number of false reports in recent weeks, A-State takes these threats seriously,” the message on the website said.

“The safety of our students, faculty and staff is our top priority and we encourage the campus community to review our online emergency response plan.”