Roadkill’, ‘Benji’ cited in bomb threats to Delhi Schools

Over the past three days, around 10 schools and a college in Delhi have received bomb threats via email from aliases like ‘Roadkill’ and ‘Benji’. Though no explosives were found, police have launched a probe to trace the culprits

New Delhi: The bomb threat emails received by around ten schools in the national capital feature unusual sender names like ‘Roadkill’ and ‘Benji’, typically seen in fiction, web series, or games, which are being probed by the Delhi Police.

In the last three days, around 10 schools and one college have received bomb threats, the Delhi Police said on Wednesday. This comes as five schools in the city received fresh threats through email on Wednesday, prompting evacuations of the students and staff.

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St Thomas School in Dwarka, Vasant Valley School in Vasant Kunj, Mother’s International School in Hauz Khas, Richmond Global School in Paschim Vihar, and Sardar Patel Vidyalaya, Lodi Estate, received bomb threats via email on Wednesday morning.

The emails that have been sent as threats for the past three days mention “IED bombs” and “RDX” on the premises of the educational institutions, along with a warning about the time of explosion for the devices.

Additionally, it has also been written that this mail has been sent by “Roadkill” and “Benji”. “Good Morning. Explosive devices are hidden inside backpacks and placed around the classrooms of the school. This is extremely serious. You will all pay for your sins. Roadkill and Benji are the persons responsible for this bloodbath. Release our names to the press/media,” is mentioned in some e-mails.

Both the names ‘Roadkill’ and ‘Benji’ are usually seen in fiction, web series, games or social media contexts. ‘Roadkill’ is a British political thriller TV series. It is also used as a code name or nickname in some areas, online gaming and social media slang.

‘Benji’ is a famous dog character who was in Hollywood films of the 1970s. It can also be used as a slang or code name, such as for a local gangster, rapper or YouTuber.

The Delhi Police said that so far, no suspicious object has been found at any of the locations, though searches are still underway. As soon as the alerts were received, emergency response teams rushed to all the schools.

The fire department, bomb disposal squads, dog squads, and Delhi Police personnel were immediately deployed to the sites. Delhi Fire Department officials confirmed receiving distress calls from the four schools between 5.30 am and 8.30 am, triggering full-scale evacuation procedures for students and staff.

This latest episode follows a similar series of threats issued on Tuesday, when St Stephen’s College of Delhi University and St Thomas School in Dwarka received bomb threat e-mails. Both institutions were evacuated and examined by the Delhi Police Bomb Disposal Squad, Dog Squad, Fire Brigade, and Special Staff.

No explosive materials were found, and both threats were declared hoaxes after thorough investigations. The police confirmed that the threats in each case came via email, and they are tracing the origin of these emails. Monday also saw three schools targeted similarly.

CRPF School in Prashant Vihar, CRPF School in Dwarka Sector 16, and another school in Chanakyapuri all received bomb threats via emails.

In each case, bomb squads were sent, buildings evacuated, and detailed searches conducted, with all alerts eventually found to be false. The Delhi Police are intensifying efforts to track the perpetrators of the threats.