By Lizzy Tsuang
Executive News Editor
Mira Costa received three announced threats between Dec. 7 and Monday that caused officials to initiate a shelter in place and order the cancellation of school for two days.
Manhattan Beach Police Department has not yet made any arrests, Executive Director of Educational Services Carolyn Seaton said. Lead investigators have not specified if the three threats are connected. In an email Costa Principal Dr. Ben Dale sent on Dec. 14 to all Costa parents, he stated that all threats have been cleared.
Costa received the first threat on Dec. 7 at 8:08 a.m. when an anonymous person using a voice changer called the front office secretary, stating that a bomb was located in a building on campus. Costa Vice Principal Deborah Hofreiter said that the caller repeated the statement twice, and when the secretary prompted the caller with a question, he or she ended the call.
Dale said that the caller did specify that the threat involved a bomb. However, there was no indication where it could have been, Seaton said. MBPD immediately instructed administrators to bring students and staff to the neighboring baseball field.
Costa Vice Principal Jon Shaw announced that the campus would need to evacuate at approximately 8:20 a.m. over the loudspeaker as MBPD and other law enforcement officials arrived on campus.
After officials assessed the nature of the threat in their first meeting with Seaton and Manhattan Beach Unified School District Superintendent Dr. Michael Matthews, they decided to close the campus for the day in order to allow MBPD sufficient time for the on-campus search, Seaton said. Administrators and district officials cancelled classes at 9:30 a.m., and all students left campus by approximately 10:10 a.m.
“Student safety is our number-one priority, and Costa administrators, faculty and staff acted accordingly,” Seaton said. “Prior to the start of the investigation, district officials and MBPD officers determined the best course of action for the search process and concluded that the use of canine units trained in bomb detection to search the campus would be the most effective method.”
While the investigation was underway, MBPD officials, led by Chief Eve Irvine, met for a second time with District officials at the MBPD safe house located at the Hope Chapel parking lot across the street from Costa, where the police department updated them about the progress of the search.
The search process ended at approximately 2:50 p.m., almost five hours after all students had left campus. The search included nine canine units and over 80 law enforcement and emergency personnel who searched each room on campus. Officials from the Manhattan Beach Fire Department; Coast Guard members; and the Beverly Hills, Port of Los Angeles, Long Beach and Hawthorne police departments assisted MBPD in its campus-wide investigation.
Following completion of the search process, the MBPD declared the campus all clear of suspicious items. Irvine then met with Seaton and Matthews for the third time to debrief the results of the search and the progress of the investigation.
Costa received its second threat before 7 a.m. on Dec. 11 in an email that was specific in nature, Dale said. Dale has also said that the email included a timeline under which the threat would occur.
Dale took immediate action to close school for the day and notified students on campus over the loudspeaker before the start of zero period. He additionally sent an email to all Costa parents at approximately 7 a.m., notifying them of class cancellations, which he stated was a precautionary measure to allow MBPD time to investigate.
MBPD and Federal Bureau of Investigation officials arrived on campus shortly after administrators closed the school. After conducting an investigation of the campus, MBPD and FBI officials confirmed that the threat stated in the email was not credible, as they did not find suspicious items on campus, MBPD Sergeant Matt Sabosky said.
Dale stated that because the timeline of the threat had passed and the police department’s search verified that there was no threat on campus, he and other administrators felt confident in allowing students back on campus at 3:30 p.m. under supervision from Costa security personnel to pick up materials or attend sports practices and games.
The third anonymous threat came on Dec. 14 and was sent via voicemail message, Dale said in the Dec. 14 email he sent to Costa parents. The threat resulted in a school-wide shelter in place at approximately 12:15 p.m., as Dale instructed via the overhead speaker. He told students to remain indoors.
He said the purpose of the working lockdown was to give MBPD time to evaluate the extent of the threat before conducting a search of the campus. Based on the results of the assessment, MBPD declared it safe for students to go outside in a “controlled area” during lunch time while officials conducted a search of the campus.
MBPD verified that the campus was clear of suspicious materials during its search, and administration resumed the schedule by shortening class times for fifth and sixth-period classes.
Costa School Resource Officer John Loy said that MBPD officers will continue to patrol the campus and its surrounding area for further security measures. MBPD officials, in partnership with the FBI, will continue the ongoing investigation regarding the sources of the threats. MBPD investigators will continue to trace the sources of the phone call and the email. Matthews has also encouraged district parents to aid the investigation by sharing any information they may have regarding the sources of the threats. Matthews said that two parents have shared potentially valuable information with the police department.
MBPD Community Affairs Officer Stephanie Martin released a press release regarding the measures to be taken against the suspect(s). She stated that the MBPD and FBI will jointly prosecute the suspect(s) locally and federally to the fullest extent of the law, regardless of whether the identified suspect(s) are adult or juvenile when or if identified.
In order to make up the two days of school that have been lost, Ed Council members are evaluating solutions that may include adding two days to the end of the school year’s calendar, Dale said. Possible alternatives may also include shortening Ski Week or Spring Break.
“Our goal is to minimize any further disruption to learning caused by unacceptable and irresponsible actions,” Matthews said. “We have reacted to all of these threats with great caution, and we believe that has been the correct response. This is the unfortunate nature of our world today. We have to walk the fine line of not letting threats impact our way of life, while at the same time acting prudently to keep students and staff out of harm’s way.”
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