Public safety officials in Rohnert Park withdrew their assertion that officers found a "noose" on a rope dangling from a tree in the city Thursday morning, which would have been the second found in the Bay Area in less the six hours.
Officers spoke with the managers of the condominium complex where the rope was found and the managers said the rope was there for children to use as a swing, a message from public safety Chief Tim Mattos said.
The rope had apparently been in the tree since before the coronavirus pandemic began, property managers told officers.
The rope was in a tree in the 900 block of Civic Center Drive.
Earlier Thursday morning, a fake body with a rope around its neck and torso was found hanging from a tree near Lake Merritt in Oakland.
A day earlier, five ropes were found hanging from various trees around Lake Merritt. Oakland police said both cases are being investigated as hate crimes.
