Carabineros deployed to the Duoc UC Valparaíso campus this Monday following reports of a shooting threat circulating on social media. The incident led to the immediate evacuation of the university's Brasil 1 and Brasil 2 buildings.
Officers from the Special Police Operations Group (GOPE) arrived on-site to conduct the necessary procedures. After an exhaustive search of the premises, authorities confirmed that no weapons or dangerous items were found.
The threat originated Sunday around 9:30 p.m. via a message in a WhatsApp group. Following the incident, prosecutors ordered a student from the campus to provide a statement as a suspect.
Institutional safety measures
The educational institution activated its security protocols after detecting a potential risk near its campus. “Following a report regarding a possible risk in the vicinity of our campus, we immediately activated our established security protocols and contacted the Chilean National Police,” Duoc UC reported.
The university reported that the threat was immediately communicated to the relevant authorities. As a precaution, all actions permitted by law and internal regulations were taken to protect students, faculty, and staff.
Duoc UC took a firm stance against such incidents. “We will not tolerate any action or threat that could jeopardize anyone's safety,” the organization stated in a press release. The institution added that it would cooperate fully with authorities and implement all necessary regulatory measures.
During the operation, uncertainty gripped students who were in the middle of classes. One student described the confusion during the evacuation to Radio Bío Bío: “Communication was very unclear. The day was going very smoothly, we were all in class, then the police arrived, the alarm went off, and we started evacuating.”
Once the situation was brought under control by officers, the institution confirmed that academic activities would resume in the evening. According to a second statement from Duoc UC, classes resumed as normal starting at 6:30 p.m.
