At a 4pm press conference, Albemarle police Lt. John Teixeira corrected himself and told reporters that police did not, in fact, “blow up” anything at Brownsville Elementary and Henley Middle School this morning, but rather that a package had been “disrupted” using a water cannon and that another “item” had been otherwise “neutralized.”

The only other new information revealed about the suspicious items found just before 7 this morning were that they had been left “out in the front area of the schools.”

Pressed by reporters about what led police to suspect danger, Teixeira said, “It’s like playing a game of poker. You only have so much in your hand when you’re going up against somebody, and you don’t want to let them know what you have in your hand.”

Asked whether this amounted to a simple prank, Teixeira said, “I consider this to be a felony; a felony is not a prank.”

As for whether Brownsville and Henley will open its doors for classes tomorrow, Albemarle schools superintendent Pam Moran said parents should monitor the county schools website or call the school closings hotline at 296-5886. Teixeira told anyone with information that could aid the investigation should call the police department at 296-5087 or Crimestoppers at 977-4000.

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