Charter Bomb Scare Investigated

Police have disclosed the circumstances surrounding a bomb threat that occurred at Charter Communications on Commerce Road on January 16.

In response to a report of a bomb scare, at about 3:14 pm on January 16, police responded to the cable television company office building at 9 Commerce Road. In a written statement, police said a Charter employee told police that “a disgruntled customer made some remarks referencing a bomb blowing up the building.”

“The customer, an elderly female residing in Southbury, stated she meant no harm by the comment, and that it was a misunderstanding,” police said. “Charter Communications wished for no further investigation,” police added.

Including the incident at Charter, within a 17-hour period on January 16 and 17, police responded to three local bomb scares, none of which involved an actual bomb.

About 5:10 am on January 17, a janitor found some graffiti on a student restroom wall in Newtown High School indicating a bomb was present in the building, but no bomb was found.

About 7:50 am on January 17, graffiti was found on a student restroom wall in Newtown Middle School indicating the presence of a bomb, but no bomb was found. The school was not evacuated.

Police are investigating the two school bomb scares.

Newtown Middle School has been the scene of several bomb scares in recent weeks, based on the content of graffiti found there.