Police arrest student after bomb threats

By Jack Gillum

A Santa Clara student was arrested this week in connection with recent bomb threats on campus, authorities said Wednesday.

Daniel E. Bautista, a freshman commuter student, was arrested Tuesday by Santa Clara police, according to Lt. Jim Buchanan, a police department spokesman.

Authorities arrested Bautista on five counts of threatening with intent to terrorize. Charges had not been brought forward by the Santa Clara County District Attorney's office Wednesday.

Bautista was booked into the Santa Clara County Jail Wednesday and is currently being held on $75,000 bail. The details of his arraignment were not immediately known Wednesday afternoon.

University authorities initially received reports of two e-mails sent to a faculty member, the message in which was a threat to detonate an explosive, Campus Safety Director Charlie Arolla said.

After the threat, police and Campus Safety officers searched the Alumni Science building May 4 around 6 p.m. and found no signs of explosives.

Another message, which Buchanan said was printed on a computer, was found in Orradre Library, according to Arolla.

Both the e-mails and letter were under investigation and their content could not be released Wednesday.

In one e-mail, Arolla said that "about 30" people were listed as recipients.

Authorities say that the investigation thus far shows that the bomb threats mentioned in the e-mails and letter were unfounded.

In an e-mail to the university Tuesday, Dean for Student Life Jeanne Rosenberger called the threat a "hoax," assuring the university that there was "no cause for concern" and recommended the community continue with their daily activities.

Arolla said that any threat -- bomb-related or not -- would be taken seriously.

Police questioned at least three Santa Clara students Tuesday afternoon, saying that Bautista alleged that other students had "put him up" to planning the threats.

Freshman Bobby Philbrook said Campus Safety authorities called him in for questioning, lasting nearly an hour. Two other freshmen, Tim Chang and Kyle Cattermole, were also questioned Tuesday about their relationships with Bautista.

All of the students interviewed denied any involvement, saying they had never heard of such plans.

Buchanan did confirm that Bautista was a student at Santa Clara, but it was not known if he was currently enrolled.

Assistant Dean for Student Life Matthew Duncan, reached by phone Wednesday morning, declined to comment on the investigation.

While Philbrook said he skipped class the day he was questioned, a friend said Campus Safety officers interrupted a class looking for him. "That's how scary" the bomb threats were, he said, "that cops can pull us out of class" for questioning.

In a telephone interview, Philbrook described Bautista as "quiet and weird," and that he would occasionaly join Philbrook's friends for meals in Market Square.

Bautista's family declined to comment on the case when reached at their San Jose home, and referred questions to their attorney, who did not immediately return phone calls Wednesday afternoon.

* Contact Jack Gillum at (408) 554-4849 or jgillum@scu.edu.