Hoax Bomb Threats, Ransom Demands Bombard Southern California

LOS ANGELES, CA — Southern California law enforcement and agencies nationwide confronted a barrage of emailed bomb threats Thursday. Businesses and schools were bombarded with the threats, but, so far, none of the local threats have been deemed credible, law enforcement officials said.

Still, police and sheriff's departments across Southern California were on high alert Thursday. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department confirmed the agency was aware of the computerized threats. The threats specifically targeted several large cities and regions across the country.

In Redondo Beach, police received a report of a possible bomb threat at a business in the 3700 block of Redondo Beach Boulevard Thursday. The building was evacuated, according to police. In Orange County, Garden Grove police said the agency received several calls around 11:15 a.m. "from local businesses reporting a bomb threat by email."

"The threat demanded cash in Bitcoin or they would blow up the business. Similar threats were reported in cities across O.C. These threats are unfounded," Garden Grove police said.

In Riverside County, a business in Palm Desert was evacuated due to the threat. The Riverside County Sheriff's Department issued a statement saying it is "one of several (Southern California law enforcement) agencies experiencing an influx of email threats. (The Department) takes these threats very seriously and is conducting an investigation into each threat. At this time no threat has been substantiated."

The Riverside County Sheriff's Dept. tweeted in an update: "We are pleased to report that after a thorough investigation into the several emails we received throughout the county, all reports have been unsubstantiated. We’d like to reassure the public that there was no credible thereat discovered."

The New York Police Department's Counterterrorism Bureau, also addressed the threats. "We are currently monitoring multiple bomb threats that have been sent electronically to various locations throughout the city," a spokesperson said. "These threats are also being reported to other locations nationwide and are not considered credible at this time."

One person who received the emailed threat at an unidentified location posted a copy on Twitter.

The threat states there is an explosive device in the company's building, and it demands a ransom of $20,000 in the internet currency Bitcoin to be paid by the end of the day.

City News Service and Patch Staffer Paige Austin contributed to this report.