Shivamogga: Tension gripped Shivamogga court premises on Monday after the principal district and sessions court’s official received a bomb threat by email, prompting an extensive security sweep by the police, dog squad and the anti-sabotage check team. Initial investigations have suggested that the threat is a hoax.According to authorities, an email was received at 2.30pm on Wednesday, claiming that five mini gas cylinder bombs would explode on the court premises at a specific time. The threat letter also reportedly made references to certain political issues and past police cases.Security forces quickly evacuated the court area and thoroughly inspected the court buildings, judicial rooms and parking lots. While the scare triggered brief panic among lawyers, staff and visitors, officials confirmed that no suspicious objects or explosives were found and operations eventually resumed under tight security.Principal district and sessions judge GA Manjunath said that while all precautionary measures are being taken to ensure public safety, initial investigations suggest the threat is a hoax. He highlighted a worrying, widespread cybercrime trend targeting judiciary members across Karnataka over the last two months, noting that scammers have been misusing the photos of several judges across the state. Using fake phone numbers, they have been messaging lawyers, court staff and officials to demand urgent financial help — often requesting around Rs 50,000 under the pretext of a banking issue.He explained that identical cyber extortion tactics and similar threat letters were already reported in multiple districts, including Chikkaballapura, Hassan, Gadag, Kolar and Dharwad. In fact, a similar threat email targeted the Shivamogga civil court about two months ago.A formal complaint has been filed with the district superintendent of police, and the Cyber Crime Branch has initiated a technical investigation to track the origin of the email and apprehend the perpetrators, he said.