Nation in brief: College shuts down after threats made

Officials of a Catholic liberal arts college shut it down indefinitely Friday and told students to leave campus after threatening messages were found scrawled in the bathroom of a freshman dorm.

Graffiti were found twice this month at St. Xavier University’s Regina Hall, including a message Thursday that read, “Be prepared to die on 4/14,” President Judith Dwyer said in a statement.

Officials closed down campuses in Chicago and suburban Orland Park, along with classroom space in downtown Chicago, and canceled all classes for the school’s 5,700 students. Buildings where community events are planned will remain open, Dwyer said.

“In this day and age, given Virginia Tech and Northern Illinois University, when you have a threat made against students or other members of the university community, you have to take steps to ensure that everyone is safe,” university spokesman Joe Moore said Friday.

Security has been increased, including the use of Chicago police and the FBI, said Chicago police spokeswoman Monique Bond.

Melville, N.Y.

Man tries to make bail with bogus bill

Police say it was no surprise a bogus $50 bill got a Long Island man arrested: He was trying to use it to pay his bail on a traffic charge.

The transaction compounded Cyheam Forney’s legal problems and landed him in jail.

Police say they spotted the 31-year-old Forney making an illegal left turn in Melville on Thursday and discovered his license had been suspended.

Forney was arrested on a misdemeanor suspended license charge – until officers said he proffered the counterfeit currency as bail money. He was being held early Friday on a felony charge of possessing a forged instrument.