Israeli teenager arrested over wave of bomb threats to NZ schools
A 19- year- old in Israel has been arrested after a police investigation into a wave of telephoned bomb threats to New Zealand schools.
The Jewish- Israeli teenager allegedly made dozens of threatening phone calls to Jewish community centres across the US, Australia and New Zealand in recent weeks.
New Zealand police became involved in an international investi- gation after the bomb threats here, which saw a number of schools across the country evacuated last year.
A threatening pre- recorded message was phoned to schools in Auckland, Hamilton, Tauranga, Gisborne, Palmerston North, Masterton and Christchurch in December.
Hoax bomb threats were also made to at least 33 schools around the country in February last year.
The calls happened over two days and the police believed they were linked. Police provided information to the Israeli authorities after inquiries.
National manager of criminal investigations Detective Superintendent Tim Anderson said the threats caused considerable disruption and fear.
“I hope that today’s development will bring some comfort to the victims involved in New Zealand.
“This was a relatively sophisticated attack which utilised voice over internet telephone calls.”
Anderson said the arrest showed the value of the strong international partnerships New Zealand police have with overseas jurisdictions.
“I am mindful that we must let the Israeli judicial process run its course, meaning that we are limited in the information we can provide.”
Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld said the teenager, from the south of Israel, holds Israeli and US citizenship.
Rosenfeld said the suspect used technology to make himself harder to track and mask his identity while making the threats, which caused “fear and panic in Jewish communities” around the world.
He added that, in one instance, bomb threats caused a plane to make an emergency landing.