Bomb Threat Shuts Down Rancho Santa Margarita Shopping Center

RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA, CA — A bomb threat forced the closure of a restaurant and bank in Rancho Santa Margarita Friday afternoon.

An Orange County Sheriff's Department hazardous devices team responded to the threat made to a BJ's Restaurant and Brewhouse and US Bank between La Miranda and Santa Margarita Parkway at 1:30 p.m., said Carrie Braun, sheriff's department spokeswoman.

By 3 p.m., bomb-sniffing dogs had completed their sweep of the shopping center and found no threat in the area, she added. Officials were in the process of taking down their perimeter and letting employees and shoppers back in the area, she added.

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