Stroum JCC Bomb Threat: No Bomb Found At Mercer Island Facility

MERCER ISLAND, WA - The Stroum Jewish Community Center was evacuated Monday night after a bomb threat was called in via phone, Mercer Island police say.

Mercer Island and Bellevue police responded to the JCC, which is located along the 3800 block of Mercer Way, before 6 p.m. on Monday, Mercer Island police Commander Leslie Burns told Patch.com. Mercer Island police later confirmed in a Facebook post that the Stroum JCC and the French-American School of Puget Sound were evacuated. Police received the initial call from Stroum around 4:45 p.m. Monday.

After a sweep of the building police - assisted by the FBI - were unable to find a device.

Two hours before the situation at Stroum JCC, Patch.com spoke to CEO Amy Lavin about threats at the center. She said that, up to that point, there had been no threats made. She was unable to elaborate on whether the center was increasing security due to threats at other community centers.

The evacuation of the Stroum JCC comes on a day when more than a dozen Jewish schools and community centers across the U.S. were threatened with violence - and just one day after another Jewish cemetery near Philadelphia was vandalized.

The other threats on Monday were reported at 13 JCCs and eight Jewish day schools in Alabama, Delaware, Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Virginia, according to the JCC of Northern America.

In York, Pennsylvania, the JCC announced on Twitter that it was closed due to an "emergency situation." The center later said it received a bomb threat via phone and authorities declared the building safe. The Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey was evacuated due to an unspecified threat.

MLive reports police investigated a bomb threat at the Jewish Community Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan where a staff member told police a man called the school located at the center and said there was a bomb in a backpack that would be detonated. No explosives or suspicious packages were found. Police in Rhode Island conducted a sweep of the JCC on the east side of Providence, but nothing was found. In Davie, Florida, a Jewish day school was evacuated following a threat. Two other Jewish day schools, one in Wynnewood, Pennsylvania and another in Annapolis, Maryland were forced to evacuate. Threats were also reported at six Jewish centers in New York, two in the Hudson Valley, one on Long Island and three in Staten Island.

The JCC in Indianapolis was closed due to a bomb threat that was determined to be a hoax. Another threat reported at at JCC in Maryland was also determined to be a hoax.

The JCC Association of North America issued the following statement in response to the threats:

“Anti-Semitism of this nature should not and must not be allowed to endure in our communities. The Justice Department, Homeland Security, the FBI, and the White House, alongside Congress and local officials, must speak out – and speak out forcefully – against this scourge of anti-Semitism impacting communities across the country.

“Actions speak louder than words. Members of our community must see swift and concerted action from federal officials to identify and capture the perpetrator or perpetrators who are trying to instill anxiety and fear in our communities.

“We remain grateful to local law enforcement who continue to serve our communities and ensure that our JCCs and schools remain safe and open for business as the vital community institutions they are.”

Jonathan Greenblatt, CEO of the Anti Defamation League, said the organization was engaged with law enforcement regarding the new wave of threats.

The threats come just a day after a Jewish cemetery in Philadelphia was vandalized. Last week, an anonymous bomb threat was called into the ADL's national headquarters in Manhattan.

This is the fifth wave of threats targeting Jewish centers.

The threats prompted reactions from state leaders. In New York, Gov. Andrew Cuomo ordered state police to work with local and federal law enforcement to investigate the threats and apprehend those responsible.
At the daily briefing, White House press secretary Sean Spicer said President Donald Trump continues to condemn any form of anti-Semitic acts.

Patch.com Reporter Feroze Dhanoa contributed to this report

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