Belmont Police Searching for Man who Phoned in Bomb Threat at Elementary School

Police on Wednesday are looking for the person who called in a fake bomb threat at a Belmont elementary school Tuesday, causing an evacuation at the school.

At around 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, an unknown man called Central Elementary School indicating there was a bomb at the school. The suspect then called the school again within moments to make the same threat, police said.

School officials evacuated the school and contacted Belmont police. Police then moved the students to a nearby CalTrain station where they could be reunited with their parents.

About 300 students, from first to fifth grade, were escorted by their teachers to the station, about two blocks away, to wait for their parents. All students were reunited with their parents by 4:20 p.m., police said.

School buildings were checked by the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Bomb Squad and no explosives were found.

“This incident points to the excellent cooperation and prior planning between the schools and public safety here in Belmont”, said Belmont Police Chief Dan DeSmidt. “Training works, the kids stayed calm and the school staff did an excellent job.”

The investigation is ongoing. Police say the only information they have abut the suspect is that the caller was an adult who spoke English with no discernible accent.

Anyone with information on this incident is asked to call Belmont Police at (650) 595-7400 or the Belmont Police Crime Tip Line at (650) 598-3000.