Who Are Roadkill, Benji, References Made In Bomb Threat Mails To Delhi Schools

At least 10 Delhi schools and one college have received bomb threats via email in the last three days. Each email carrying the threat was signed off by two cryptic names: Roadkill and Benji. These unusual aliases are more commonly seen in fictional series or online gaming circles.

Who Are 'Roadkill' And 'Benji'?

Roadkill is commonly understood as a term for animals killed on roads, but it is also used metaphorically to describe someone defeated or discarded.

In pop culture, 'Roadkill' is the title of a British political thriller TV series that aired on BBC One in 2020.

It stars Hugh Laurie as Peter Laurence, a charismatic and controversial UK government minister whose life begins to unravel due to scandals, secrets, and political rivalries.

In digital spaces like online gaming and hacker forums, 'Roadkill' often appears as a dark or edgy username.

'Benji' refers to a popular Hollywood dog character from the 70s. The original film, released in 1974, features a stray dog who helps rescue kidnapped children. The movie was a big hit and led to several sequels, including For the Love of Benji (1977) and Benji the Hunted (1987). A reboot was also released on Netflix in 2018.

Over time, the name 'Benji' has also been adopted as a nickname or slang in online communities, rap culture, and gaming.

Bomb Threats By 'Roadkill' And 'Benji'

On Wednesday morning, five prominent Delhi schools - St Thomas School (Dwarka), Vasant Valley School (Vasant Kunj), Mother's International School (Hauz Khas), Richmond Global School (Paschim Vihar), and Sardar Patel Vidyalaya (Lodi Estate) - received threat emails, warning of explosive devices planted inside backpacks in classrooms.

The message read, "Explosive devices are hidden inside backpacks and placed around the classrooms of the school. This is extremely serious. You will all pay for your sins. Roadkill and Benji are the people responsible for this bloodbath. Release our names to the press/media."

On Monday and Tuesday, three other schools and Delhi University's St. Stephen's College received similar threats. Ten schools and one college have been targeted so far this week.

As soon as the alerts were received, emergency teams, including Delhi Police, fire services, bomb squads, and dog units, were rushed to the sites. All locations were thoroughly searched, and no explosives were found.

St Stephen's received the threat email around 7:15 am on Wednesday, claiming IEDs and RDX were planted on campus, set to explode by 2:00 pm. The area was cleared after a detailed search, and the threat was declared a hoax.

Investigation Underway

Delhi Police confirmed that all the threats were made via email. Cybercrime units are working to trace the origins of the messages and identify the individuals behind the aliases 'Roadkill' and 'Benji'. So far, no arrests have been made.