Marlboro middle school bomb threat today. What we know

MARLBORO - An emailed bomb threat has resulted in the shutdown of all township schools, the board of education building and all township offices Thursday morning, according to authorities.

Marlboro Township Police, along with other law-enforcement agencies, said they are conducting a thorough and comprehensive check of the buildings following the threats made against Marlboro Memorial Middle School and the Board of Education buildings.

Marlboro High School, which is part of the Freehold Regional High School District, remains open.

"I'm optimistic schools will be open tomorrow," Marlboro Mayor Jon Hornik said.

At 12:30 p.m., Marlboro Township Police said checks of both buildings have been completed and nothing dangerous or hazardous was identified.

At 9:00 a.m., Marlboro Township Police said they were "investigating the source of this threat and [have] deemed it to be of low risk and low credibility." A thorough check of both buildings is ongoing, including the use of explosive detection canines.

According to the school district, the schools received the threat via email, prompting them to take immediate action to ensure the safety of all students, staff and faculty.

Police issued a statement Thursday afternoon saying the email listed four locations where bombs were placed, including the middle school and the board of education building, the only two in the township. The statement did not include information about the other two locations.

The district initially decided to delay school for two hours Thursday morning, but posted on their X account that Marlboro Township Public Schools will be closed all day. Government offices were also closed Thursday morning, according to Hornik, but have since reopened.

"The blood drive and all afternoon recreation center programs are on as scheduled," Hornik said.

It is not known what prompted the threat.

On Wednesday, Superintendent Michael Ballone put out a letter to the district that said there had recently been an incident involving "inappropriate physical contact perpetrated by a teaching staff member against a student" at the middle school.

"As soon as we became aware of the situation, action was taken, and the staff member in question was immediately removed from her position," Ballone said in his letter.

The Board of Education President was notified and the school is working with law enforcement about the teacher incident , the letter said. At this time, they believe this to be an isolated event.

"Although incidents like these can cause concern within our community, please know we are committed to providing support and resources to any students, staff or families who may be in need," he said.

Hornik said there is no indication that the two incidents are related.

The Marlboro Township School District is home to over 4,500 students, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

This is a developing story. Check back with APP.com for more updates.

This article originally appeared on Asbury Park Press: Bomb threat New Jersey: Marlboro schools closed, township offices