The entire student body as well as staff of Bedford Park’s Bronx High School of Science were evacuated from the school building after a bomb threat was discovered on the school’s answering machine on Friday, June 12, according to the NYPD. No device was found following the threat and classes would eventually resume. The hoax comes a little over two months after a similar call was received at the nearby 52nd Precinct stationhouse in Norwood in April.

 

An NYPD spokesperson said officers from the 52^nd Precinct were called to the school, located at 75 West 205th Street and Goulden Avenue, at 8.56 a.m. on Friday. “An unknown individual left a voicemail overnight, threatening that there was a bomb in the school; statements made by an unknown individual,” the spokesperson said.

 

“Responding officers evacuated the building and swept the location,” the spokesperson added. “No device was found. The building was cleared for re-entry. The investigation remains ongoing.”

At least nine NYPD patrol vehicles were seen parked outside the school on the day of the incident as more than a dozen police officers, members of the Emergency Services Unit (ESU) and the Strategic Response Group (SRG) were seen emerging from the main building. They later also searched a new smaller campus building. Students were observed gathered in groups outside Governors Field at Alumni Park and outside the side entrance to DeWitt Clinton High School along Paul Avenue near West Mosholu Parkway South.

 

According to a police radio transmission of the incident, the NYPD’s “heavy weapons team” was also called to the scene.

 

At around the same time, Norwood News also witnessed students of P.S. / M.S. 95, located at 3961 Hillman Avenue at Sedgwick Avenue in nearby Van Cortlandt Village, being evacuated for an apparent fire drill. No police officers were seen in that area.

Bomb Threat at the 52nd Precinct

When Norwood News asked the NYPD about a prior bomb threat that had been called into the 52nd Precinct stationhouse, located at 3016 Webster Avenue in Norwood, on Friday, April 3, we were informed that the incident took place at 1.12 p.m. that day.

 

An NYPD spokesperson said of the prior precinct incident, “An unknown individual stated that there was a bomb inside of the location. Officers swept the location and no device was found. The investigation remains ongoing.”

 

Norwood resident John Hand had been attending the annual Good Friday procession outside St. Brendan and St. Ann’s Roman Catholic Church on East 206th Street, also in Norwood, on the same day as the precinct bomb threat was called in. He said he witnessed police officers, who had blocked off the streets in both directions to facilitate the procession, abruptly leave the location, leaving a large crowd in the street seemingly unprotected from passing vehicular traffic.

He said cars, bikes and scooters later passed through the procession in both directions causing a chaotic and potentially dangerous situation. Hand said at the time, “I watched them leave.” He recalled that the officers told someone from the church they were leaving. “It makes no sense. Let’s just say somebody, hypothetically, got hit right now.”

 

Referencing America’s war with Iran, Hand concluded, “If somebody knew about this and wanted to kill people, it’s a perfect opportunity. I can’t believe the cops left and there were a lot of them.” Hand claimed there were four squad cars at the church before they were all called away.

 

Norwood News observed the scene for at least 10 minutes as SUVs, cars, scooters and bikers dangerously passed through the procession, including many seniors and children.

Hand and another male parishioner were then observed moving a metal barricade onto the street, blocking traffic at East 207th Street and Perry Avenue.

 

As reported, the former unified Patrol Borough Bronx (as a whole) had had a total employee count of 344, made up of 323 uniformed personnel and 21 civilian employees. The recently implemented Patrol Borough Bronx North

 

Under the recently implemented Patrol Borough Bronx North (PBXN) structure and Patrol Borough Bronx South (PBXN) structure, each will have the same number of employees, as reported. In each new borough command, in the Patrol section, there will be a total of 111 employees, comprising 99 uniformed personnel and 12 civilian employees.

 

Meanwhile, in the Detective section, in each new borough command, there will be a total of 164 employees, comprising 154 uniformed personnel and 10 civilian employees. This means a total employee count in each new borough command of 275 employees, comprising 253 uniformed personnel and 22 civilian employees.

 

After citywide crime statistics for May were recently released, as reported, Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch noted that overall citywide major crime is down, and the new Patrol Borough Bronx South command similarly saw a decrease in year-to-date index crimes in May. However, conversely, much of the Northwest Bronx, including the 52nd, 50th and 46th Precincts saw a rise in year-to-date crime in several major categories.

 

As reported, Norwood News asked the commissioner during a press conference held Monday, June 15, if she had any comments in that regard. “The crime declines that we have seen generally, in the borough of the Bronx, particularly in the South Bronx, have really been historic across the borough so far this year,” Tisch said in part. “Of course, there are always going to be problem areas, problem precincts, and that’s why we use the CompStat process (NYPD crime data collection tool), and we do deployments of officers to places where we’re seeing crime go up.”

 

The day after the procession on Saturday, April 4, 18 people were injured during a Lao New Year’s Festival in New Liberia, Louisiana, after a vehicle plowed into a crowd celebrating the Buddhist New Year. According to one media report, the driver was charged with 18 counts of vehicular negligence and possession of alcohol in a vehicle.

 

In a follow-up email to the NYPD, a police official was asked if the Bronx Science and 52nd Precinct bomb threats could be related. We also asked if a threat was made to P.S. / M.S. 95. We did not receive an immediate response.

According to a staffer at Bronx High School of Science, the school currently has 2,900 students enrolled. A second staffer in the principal’s office was asked if the principal had any comment about the threat and evacuation. The woman replied, “No comment.”

 

When contacted, an NYC Department of Education (DOE) spokesperson issued the following statement regarding the incident: “The school was evacuated out of an abundance of caution following a reported threat. School staff immediately responded, in line with established safety protocols and the NYPD was quickly on site.”

 

The statement continued, “The threat has been deemed non credible, and students have safely returned to their classrooms. We remain in close communication with school staff and will provide any appropriate support as needed.”

According to published media reports, Bronx High School of Science was one of hundreds of schools and businesses where bomb threats were made on Dec. 13, 2018. According to WABC, the school received a call saying a pipe bomb would explode in 20 minutes. The school was evacuated and no device was found.

 

According to DNAinfo, a third bomb threat was called into Bronx Science High School on May 9, 2012. On that occasion, the threat was e-mailed, and the school was not evacuated.

 

As reported by Norwood News at the time, around two and half hours after students and teachers were evacuated from The Bronx’s P.S. 20 in Norwood on March 4, 2022, due to a bomb threat, the building was, thankfully, declared clear by police and safe for reentry. However, according to some P.S. 20 staff members, the incident served to highlight what some said was a dysfunctional environment at the school, especially given an apparent delay with the initial evacuation.

 

The NYPD’s bomb squad were called to the Williamsbridge Oval in Norwood in December 2022 when a grenade was found in the park. Another grenade was found in the Edenwald section the same month. More recently, in March 2025, the bomb squad were also called to a Bedford Park residential home to remove weapons.

NYC Council holds budget hearings. Video courtesy of NBC New York via YouTube

The police commissioner testified earlier this year at a City Council budget hearing about security in New York City generally in light of many additional, high profile security events taking place this summer in and around the city. These include the Knicks ticker tape parade on Thursday, June 18, which caps their recent NBA championship win, the FIFA World Cup, and potentially Taylor Swift’s wedding.

 

Earlier this year, two people were arrested at Gracie Mansion, the mayor’s residence, on March 7 and remain in custody, following the discovery of some explosive devices, one of which ignited. The FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force is investigating the matter with the NYPD and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. They said the public can report any additional information to the FBI by calling 1-800-CALL-FBI or submitting a tip online at tips.fbi.gov.

*Síle Moloney contributed to this story.