HAWAII COUNTY POLICE DEPARTMENT
SOUTH HILO PATROL DIVISION
LIEUTENANT RICHARD MIYAMOTO
PHONE: 961-2213
DECEMBER 23, 2004
I-16661
MEDIA RELEASE
A Hilo store was evacuated temporarily Thursday (December 23, 2004) after a woman suspect made a bomb threat to employees.
About 12:57 p.m., a 49-year-old woman entered the Ben Franklin store at 333 Kilauea Avenue and told employees that a bomb was in the building’s clock tower and was set to go off at 1 p.m.
The woman then went to the AT&T Wireless Services offices, called the 911 emergency number and told Fire Department personnel the same story.
Responding South Hilo patrol officers found the woman in the parking lot. As a precaution, they evacuated Ben Franklin and other business establishments in the immediate area.
A search of the premises failed to turn up any explosive device, and the stores were reopened about 1:40 p.m.
The female was transported to Hilo Medical Center, where she is currently confined, for an emergency psychological examination.
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