By BOB OLIVER
Times-Herald Newspapers
DEARBORN — A bomb threat to the 19th District Court was deemed false, but investigations into the call are ongoing.
The threat was received from a 911 call around 12:30 p.m. May 2. The call led to an evacuation of the building and a disruption of court activities until a search of the interior and exterior of the building showed the threat to be false.
“The case is still open,” Police Chief Ronald Haddad said. “We take the threat very seriously and we are gonna expend every resource we have until we find the individual or individuals responsible.”
In a message containing several profane words, a caller told the 911 dispatcher that a bomb had been placed inside the courthouse. The court was notified and the police were called.
When police arrived they talked with a court officer about the threat and evacuated the building. The Bomb Squad entered the building and a search was made for any suspicious packages or items. There was also a search of the perimeter of the building. Nothing was found in the search.
A K-9 unit that specializes in locating explosives was also taken inside and around the building without finding anything out of the ordinary.
With nothing suspicious found the building resumed its normal activities just after 2 p.m.
Since the incident the investigation into the call has been ongoing and Haddad said that the department is currently following up on leads.
Police were able to find that the call was made from a cell phone with the area code “911.” This area code means that the call came from a deactivated cell phone.
According to police, this type of call is available on most cell phones. The caller has the option of making an emergency call to 911 even if the phone is not activated.
Where the call was made from and who it was made by have yet to be determined, but Haddad said that the department is working hard to answer both questions.
“We will continue to work on this case until we can get it solved,” Haddad said. “The disruption of the court is totally unacceptable.”
(Bob Oliver can be reached at [email protected].)