Bomb threats to businesses part of possible nationwide hoax
Authorities in Central Florida investigated bomb threats emailed to several local businesses Thursday afternoon, which appeared to be part of a nationwide hoax.
According to news reports and police agencies across the country, the emailed threats indicated that an explosive device would be detonated unless a ransom was paid in the cryptocurrency Bitcoin.
According to the Associated Press, “Think Twice” was the subject line for at least some of the emails.
In Orlando, officers responded to bomb threats at the Bank of America Center tower on Orange Avenue downtown; at an office park and condo complex on Semoran Boulevard; at a townhouse building on Lake Baldwin Lane; at a law office on West Colonial Drive; and at the Orlando Science Center, according to an online active calls log.
The Orlando Police Department said it was is assisting federal authorities in investigating the threats. Within an hour of the agency acknowledging the threats, the visible police presence at the downtown office tower had dissipated.
A business on Celebration Place in Kissimmee also received threats, Osceola County sheriff’s spokesman Maj. Jacob Ruiz said. And several Seminole County schools were temporarily placed on a “Code Yellow” lockdown after threats were sent to nearby businesses.
Seminole County Public Schools spokesman Michael Lawrence said the schools decided to dismiss as usual due to information that the threats were