Crime & Safety
Manhattan Village Shopping Center Shut Down By Suspicious Item
Manhattan Village was evacuated Friday because of a suspicious item found at Chili's restaurant. You'll never guess what police found.
MANHATTAN BEACH, CA — Two out of town diners visiting the Manhattan Beach Chili's restaurant left the Manhattan Village mall in total chaos after leaving their bags unattended, police said.
On Friday afternoon, the pair abandoned their luggage at the restaurant after acting suspiciously, according to Manhattan Beach Police Department information officer Tim Zins.
"The call came in at 12:45 from Chili's, when a man and woman dining at the restaurant refused to take their luggage with them, saying they were going to go for a walk and would get it later," Zins said. "It seemed suspicious to the management at Chili's that the pair totally disregarded their belongings."
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The Manhattan Beach police were called and the mall was evacuated all the way to Macy's, as well as the residences directly behind Chili's that were also temporarily evacuated. Authorities in Manhattan Beach asked residents to evacuate Manhattan Village shopping center around 726 Westport in Manhattan Village was also evacuated Friday afternoon at 2:15 p.m.
"The Redondo Beach K-9 bomb sniffing team and LA Sheriff's bomb squad both responded to the scene," Zins said.
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The pair of wayward travelers were located near the mall area, interviewed by police.
The couple said that they flew in from Indiana, took transportation from the airport to Chili's to wait for friend who was late to arrive, according to Zins.
"They didn't feel it was a problem to leave the packages there, unattended," he said. "The K-9 officers sniffed the bags for explosives, finding none, the bags were searched."
No arrests were made, and the couple was allowed to leave with luggage in tow.
"There was no intent to cause disruption or false police report," he said. "They were from out of town, and just made a mistake. You don't do that in this day and age. People don't just leave their belongings unattended."
By 3:30 p.m, the area had been declared safe, and shoppers were allowed back into the shopping center.
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