University Warns Against Bomber

In the wake of another apparent attack by the infamous Unabomber, the Harvard police sent out e-mail and voice mail messages to 10,000 students and faculty on Tuesday warning them to be suspicious of any unusual packages.

"All members of the University Community are urged to exercise special caution in handling incoming mail, especially padded manila envelopes, packages that appear to contain videotapes, plastic boxes, copper tubing or batteries, or parcels that bear unfamiliar return addresses," the message said.

The warning came after a mail bomb killed New Jersey advertising executive Thomas J. Mosser on Saturday. The FBI has labeled the culprit the Unabomber because he or she has been known to target universities and airlines. Two people have been killed and 23 have been injured by the bomber, who last year maimed an assistant professor at Yale.

"The fact that it hasn't happened here doesn't mean that it can't happen here," Harvard Police Chief Paul E. Johnson said in a telephone interview yesterday afternoon.

Four people in the Harvard community called the police on Wednesday asking them to inspect suspicious packages.

The calls came from Lowell House, the Center for International Affairs, 2 Divinity Avenue and Fay House. Two other suspicious packages were found yesterday at Adams House and William James Hall.

Police said they could not release the names of the people who received the packages.

The Cambridge fire department and local bomb experts examined every package and found them to be harmless.

According to Johnson, the way to keep the situation under control "is a question of overlying security."

But the false alarms have not allowed the Harvard Police to relax.

"Anyone suspicious should call the police," said Harvard Police Lt. Lawrence J. Murphy.

Murphy said the department and the FBI work closely together on a regular basis and have been giving this matter serious attention.

"This could happen anywhere," Murphy said.

After the attack on the Yale professor last year, the Harvard police sent their first message to the University community.

Murphy claimed that several of the bombs used by the Unabomber were in the shape of a video cassette and had copper tubing and batteries.

Bombs of this description were sent last year both to the Yale professor and to scientific researchers at the California State University in Sacramento.

Both Harvard police and the FBI believe the bomber is operating on the West Coast, but they have few clues to the location and identity of the Unabomber.

Officials think the bomber may have lost his job to a computer, causing him to attack people with ties to high technology, according to Wednesday's Boston Herald.

In his 11 years as Harvard police chief, Johnson said, "I haven't had the experience of having a bomb go off.

Then he added: "But we can't afford to be too careful.

"Anyone suspicious should call the police," said Harvard Police Lt. Lawrence J. Murphy.

Murphy said the department and the FBI work closely together on a regular basis and have been giving this matter serious attention.

"This could happen anywhere," Murphy said.

After the attack on the Yale professor last year, the Harvard police sent their first message to the University community.

Murphy claimed that several of the bombs used by the Unabomber were in the shape of a video cassette and had copper tubing and batteries.

Bombs of this description were sent last year both to the Yale professor and to scientific researchers at the California State University in Sacramento.

Both Harvard police and the FBI believe the bomber is operating on the West Coast, but they have few clues to the location and identity of the Unabomber.

Officials think the bomber may have lost his job to a computer, causing him to attack people with ties to high technology, according to Wednesday's Boston Herald.

In his 11 years as Harvard police chief, Johnson said, "I haven't had the experience of having a bomb go off.

Then he added: "But we can't afford to be too careful.