Olympia man arrested in connection with bomb threat that evacuated west Olympia Target
A 28-year-old Olympia man was arrested in connection with a bomb threat that prompted the Target store in west Olympia to evacuate Wednesday, a spokesperson for the Olympia Police Department says.
No explosive devices were found during a search of the store that was completed by 2 p.m., according to Olympia Police Lt. Paul Lower. Just after 2:30 p.m., the police department tweeted that officers had cleared the building and employees would be returning.
Someone called 911 at about 10:30 a.m. Wednesday and said there were bombs inside of Target, which is on the 2900 block of Harrison Avenue Northwest, according to Olympia Police and Thurston County 911 dispatch.
Olympia patrol officers responded to the store and contacted management, who chose to evacuate the store, according to Lower. Main roads in the area remained open, Lower said, while parking lots and side roads were closed.
The regional Washington State Patrol bomb squad was called from King County, according to Trooper Ryan Burke. The team searched the store using their bomb-sniffing dogs, assisted by an additional handler and dog from Pierce County Sheriff’s Office.
Olympia police officers entered the phone number used to call in the threat into a police database, Lt. Lower said, and learned it was associated with a known suspect in other crimes. There were a couple addresses associated with the phone number, and officers found the suspect at an address on Fern Street Southwest in Olympia, according to Lower.
Through an interview and other evidence, officers found probable cause to arrest the 28-year-old Olympia man on suspicion of threats to bomb property, a Class B felony, according to Lower. He was booked into Thurston County jail.
This story was originally published September 30, 2020 at 1:03 PM.
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