No bomb found in Tiffin mailbox

TIFFIN — A 13-year-old from Fremont was arrested after a threatening text message about a pipe bomb prompted the evacuation of a Tiffin neighborhood Thursday morning, according to Tiffin Police Chief David Pauly. The Toledo Police Bomb Squad opened the mailbox at a residence in the 100 block of First Avenue and found no explosive device inside, Pauly said. Pauly told The Advertiser-Tribune earlier Thursday morning that a resident received the threatening text at 7:24 a.m. and contacted police shortly after. At the time, Pauly said investigators did not yet know whether an actual device was in the mailbox and noted the message could be a spoofing incident, but officers evacuated the area and closed surrounding streets out of an abundance of caution. No one was home at the residence when the text was received, he said. According to a news release from the department, officers made no attempt to open the mailbox, noting that explosive devices can be built to detonate from movement, pressure changes or the opening of a container such as a mailbox. First Avenue was shut down between North Washington Street and Vine Street and residences along that stretch were evacuated. Tiffin Fire and Rescue Division staged in a secure area in case it was needed. The Seneca County Emergency Management Agency asked residents to stay clear of First Avenue between Vine Street, North Washington Street, Second Avenue and Jackson Street, and Warren Street was blocked between Second Avenue and First Avenue. A member of the Toledo Police Bomb Squad, using proper safety equipment and protocols, examined and opened the mailbox and confirmed no device was present, according to the release. While the scene was being secured, Tiffin detectives worked to trace the origin of the text. Pauly told The Advertiser-Tribune earlier that investigators were reviewing security camera footage from the neighborhood and pursuing exigent circumstance warrants to obtain information from the phone carrier and from Apple. The message was ultimately traced to a 13-year-old juvenile in Fremont, according to the release. The Fremont Police Department assisted in locating and interviewing the juvenile, who admitted to sending the message and said it was intended as a joke, the release said. He was taken into custody and confined at the Seneca County Youth Center. He will be charged with inducing panic, a first-degree misdemeanor, and is required to appear in Seneca County Juvenile Court. In the release, Pauly emphasized that any threat involving explosives must be treated as credible until proven otherwise and urged residents who receive suspicious or threatening messages not to investigate on their own but to contact police immediately. Pauly thanked the Tiffin Fire and Rescue Division, Tiffin Public Works, the Fremont Police Department, the Toledo Police Bomb Squad, and Tiffin officers and detectives for their response.