3 La Union campuses threatened online

INQUIRER FILES CALASIAO, Pangasinan — A bomb threat targeting three college campuses was posted online, prompting the La Union provincial police to deploy its explosive ordnance disposal and canine unit in San Fernando City on July 25. The police said the unit conducted comprehensive paneling operations (systematic physical checks) and security sweeps across campus grounds but did not detect explosives at the Don Mariano Marcos Memorial State University–Mid La Union Campus (DMMMSU-MLUC), the Saint John Bosco College of Northern Luzon Inc. (SJBCNL), and Lorma College. READ: La Union school receives bomb threat, adjusts classes, work Article continues after this advertisement Police Colonel Redentor Ulsano, La Union police provincial director, assured students, parents, and school personnel that La Union province remains safe, secure, and fully under control. The bomb threat, as well as provocative slurs, was made through a fictitious social media account, but the police cybercrime unit is tracking the individual or group that made the post, according to Ulsano’s office. “We urge the public to remain vigilant and refrain from sharing or reposting unverified social media content that incites unnecessary panic. Anyone with information about the individual operating the ‘Britney Madonna Kepya’ account is strongly encouraged to report to the nearest police station or contact the LUPPO Hotline at 0998-598-5152,” Ulsano said in a statement. Presidential Decree No. 1727 (the 1980 decree that prohibits bomb jokes) declares unlawful and penalizes the malicious dissemination of false information and the willful making of any threat involving bombs, explosives, or any similar device or means of destruction, regardless of the medium used, police said. Its core policy is to treat false bomb threats or hoaxes as a distinct public safety offense with specific penalties, even if no actual explosive exists. Offenders will also be prosecuted under Republic Act No. 10175 (the Cybercrime Prevention Act of 2012). /mcm Your subscription could not be saved. Please try again. Your subscription has been successful.