Police Investigate Bomb Threat Written in Middle School Bathroom

Published on January 10, 2023

Palo Alto, CA – Police are investigating a threat discovered on a middle school bathroom stall this morning, where the unknown suspect threatened to bomb the school on Wednesday.  Police are actively working with school administration officials to investigate the threat and will have officers on site tomorrow to ensure student and staff safety.

On Tuesday, January 10, 2023, at about 11:24 a.m., our 24-hour dispatch center received a call from the administrators at Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School at 480 East Meadow Drive reporting a suspicious circumstance.  The investigation revealed that a student had found writings scrawled on a stall inside a girls’ bathroom indicating that the author intended to bomb the school on Wednesday during the school day.  The student promptly reported their discovery to staff, who in turn notified police.

Police are actively investigating this case and are working collaboratively with school administration officials to identify the person responsible for leaving the message.  Police will have officers on site at the school on Wednesday to ensure everyone’s safety.

Police praise the student who came forward to report what they had seen, as their actions are consistent with the common mantra of “If you see something, say something.”   Any other students who may have more information about this threat or the person who wrote it should immediately tell a trusted adult or notify police.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call our 24-hour dispatch center at (650) 329-2413.  Anonymous tips can be e-mailed to paloalto@tipnow.org or sent via text message or voice mail to (650) 383-8984.