Bomb threat empties Montana Kmart store

HELENA – A Kmart in north-central Montana was evacuated for a few hours Wednesday after a bomb threat, one of a number of such threats reported at stores across the country in recent days.

A thorough search of the Havre store turned up no explosive device, and the business reopened about 12:30 p.m., Hill County Sheriff Greg Szudera said.

The FBI is looking into whether the Havre threat was connected to others made at banks and businesses elsewhere in the nation, Szudera said. But he noted that the caller did not make any demands, unlike instances near Phoenix, Detroit, Salt Lake City and Philadelphia.

“We do have a phone number, and it’s being investigated,” Szudera said. “I’ve requested the assistance of the FBI to trace down this number.”

The threat to the Kmart in Havre, about 205 miles northeast of Helena, was called in about 9:30 a.m.

The male caller told an employee an explosive device had been planted on the property and would be detonated if any law enforcement came within 40 feet of the building, Szudera said.

The Sheriff’s Office and other agencies responded, established a perimeter and surveillance, and set up a command center.

Szudera and four deputies searched the building. A drug dog also was used to “alert us to any unwanted individuals” in the store, he said.

The search was “very difficult and time-consuming,” Szudera added. “We went through aisle by aisle and looked through boxes that had any kind of a suspicious seal, or where the tape was already removed halfway and put back together.

“We searched the store completely, including locked offices, entryways, bathrooms and storage areas.”

No bomb was found, and the store was turned back to the store manager about noon. The business reopened about half an hour later.

Two managers and 15 to 20 employees were in the store when the threat was received, Szudera said. He did not know how many customers were evacuated.

Further investigation into the bomb threat is under way.

Szudera said authorities did not know whether the threat was related to a string of others across the country, but the caller did not demand money. In Newport, R.I., employees at a Wal-Mart wired $10,000 to someone who called with a bomb threat.

Kim Freely, a spokeswoman for Sears Holdings, which includes Kmart, said Wednesday afternoon that she was not aware of any threats made at other Kmart stores.

“It was an isolated incident,” she said. “We’re very relieved that none of our customers or associates were injured.”

Freely said she couldn’t comment further because of the ongoing investigation.