Duisburg Police and State Security Authority Respond to Threats Against Schools
The Duisburg police and the state security authority in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, took a precautionary measure in response to a perceived “threat situation” for the students of 14 comprehensive and secondary schools in the city. The decision was made after receiving two anonymous letters, one on Friday and another on Sunday, containing “threatening and right-wing extremist statements.”
The first letter, received on Friday, led the police to start an investigation and the second letter, received on Sunday, prompted the final decision to close the schools and inform the parents. The police confirmed the incident to Bild, a German newspaper, after the newspaper inquired about the event.
According to the police, the first letter was received at the school administration of the Gesamtschule-Mitte on Friday, containing threatening and right-wing extremist statements, with the author claiming to plan criminal acts for Monday at the educational institution. The police were informed of the incident on the same day and the state security authority began an investigation.
On Monday, the school received another letter with threatening contents, affecting 13 additional schools in the city. Experts from the investigating authorities, however, concluded that the planned actions were not likely to occur and the threat situation was not deemed serious.
The authorities decided to close the 14 schools and the school administrators were instructed to send a notification to the parents. Although the decision was not to declare a school-free day, some schools will hold classes in a distance format and the 9th-grade practical training will also take place.
Despite the police’s assessment, some schools in Duisburg announced that they would not hold classes on Monday and a local gymnasium sent an email to parents saying that the school was not affected by the threat situation and parents could decide whether to send their children to school.