Publication select ▼
Bomb threats have been called in to several local Walmart stores, including this one in Oakland Township.
Photo by Mary Beth Almond
Multiple Walmart stores were evacuated Feb. 6 following a series of bomb threats, according to reports from the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies said a man called the Rochester Hills Walmart, located at 2500 S. Adams Road, at around 11 a.m. Feb. 6 and threatened to “blow up the store unless a cash ransom was paid.”
A similar threat, at the same time, was made to the Walmart store in White Lake Township.
The Oakland County Sheriff’s Office said the two Oakland County stores were “immediately evacuated,” and deputies, along with explosive detection K-9s, responded to each store. No explosives were discovered in either location.
A similar threat was also phoned into a Walmart in Canton Feb. 6.
“We’ve seen similar things happen in different parts of the country,” Oakland County Sheriff Michael Bouchard said in a statement. “In the other threats, they were not credible. But out of an abundance of caution, explosive-detection dogs were sent to check the stores. We will be working with other authorities locally and nationally to investigate.”
Deputies say the series of bomb threats could be a part of a larger effort to disrupt the retailing giant.
At press time, deputies said the Oakland County stores were expected to reopen later in the afternoon.
