L.A. Mall Evacuated Due To Bomb Scare; Beverly Center In Los Angeles Closed For Four Hours Over Suspicious Package

An L.A. mall was evacuated on Sunday, March 24 due to the appearance of a suspicious package in the back seat of a car.

Los Angeles' Beverly Center was the L.A. mall evacuated this weekend, when a motorist told police that someone had placed a suspicious looking package in the back seat of his vehicle.

The motorist claimed the package was not there when he first parked, according to Los Angeles police officer Norma Eisenman of the Media Relations office.

LAPD Captain Lillian Carranza says the man returned to his car on Sunday, which was on the first floor of the parking center in a spot different from where he had initially parked.

He found that his briefcase had been moved to a different part of his car. After recent suspicions over his safety due to a "personal feud", the man was concerned and notified the police.

The feud is "what raised the level of concern," Carranza said.

The bomb squad arrived and used a robot to remove the briefcase from the car, blasted it with water, and detonated it. Nothing dangerous was discovered in the package.

The authorities used bomb-sniffing dogs to ensure the safety of the surrounding area before allowing people back inside the parking area and mall.

The three-level L.A. mall sits on top of a seven-story parking garage. Employees said both the mall and parking garage were evacuated before 1:30 pm, totaling more than 1,000 people.

Eisenman commented that the police decreed the area safe at 4:15 pm.

"The device was detonated. Things are expected to return to normal at the mall shortly," Eisenman announced.

Nobody was injured during or prior to the evacuation.

Shopper Christina Taylor said that the mall was in chaos when the announcement to evacuate was first made. "No one knew what was going on - someone said it was a fire, someone said it was a person with a gun," she described. "We love the Beverly Center, but it was terrifying."

The L.A. Mall evacuation incident is still being investigated, according to the LA Times. Authorities are examining security footage from the scene for more information.