The Daily Star's FREE newsletter is spectacular! Sign up today for the best stories straight to your inbox Sign up today! Thank you for subscribing See our privacy notice Invalid Email

(Image: GOOGLE)

Police forces in London, Humberside and the North East have now launched investigations.

More than 35 schools in Northumbria received emails threatening to detonate explosives on their grounds if cash was not handed over.

Detectives are now probing the messages, believed to have come from the US.

The emails were reportedly altered to look like they had come from a gaming network called VeltPvp.

It is a Minecraft server run by businesses that sells items to in-game players.

Someone sent the emails in an effort to damage Velt, Sky News report.

The hoaxer then accused them of targeting other rival Minecraft servers.

(Image: TWITTER)

But Velt LLC’s chief executive Carson Kallen said: “That’s completely false…I hope this person gets caught.”

Northumbria Police said in a statement: “Schools have been visited by police to reassure them that the incident is being treated as hoax and address any concerns.

“We take all incidents of this nature extremely seriously and an investigation into the emails in question is under way.

“If anyone has any information about the hoax then they should contact police on 101 quoting log 218 19/03/18.”

The Metropolitan Police said communications have been made to “a number of schools” in London.

Cardinal Road School in Feltham, west London, was evacuated after the threat.

A message sent out by the school to parents read: "Following an incident at Cardinal Road School we have been advised to evacuate the building.

(Image: GOOGLE)

"Please collect your child as soon as possible."

Parent Charleyy Rachael tweeted: “My daughter’s school has been evacuated because of a bomb threat and I’m still miles away in an Uber racing to get her home safely.

“Please don’t f**k with other people’s kids. There’s so much wrong with this world.”

Another school in Bristol has been placed on lockdown.

Officers at the Bristol Free School are searching students’ pockets and bags, the Bristol Post reports.

A number of schools in North Yorkshire also received the threatening emails.

A spokesman said: "Our Cybercrime Unit Detectives, supported by local officers, have looked at these incidents and it is not believed there is any genuine threat.

"We are working with schools to offer reassurance and address any concerns."

Last week, a bomb scare in Manchester sparked an evacuation near a luxury hotel.

Cops rushed to a suspected World War Two bomb near the Lowry Hotel but later confirmed it was a “large cylinder object”.