Police hunt for culprit in bomb scare

By CASEY CORA
Published June 20, 2007

TAMPA - A bomb scare at a bank Tuesday morning turned out to be a hoax. Now police are searching for the prankster they say committed a felony.

Investigators said a man drove into the commercial lane of the drive-through window of the Wachovia Bank at 1770 N 50th St. and placed a package inside the teller's tray.

The teller told police the package contained a note demanding an undisclosed amount of cash.

When the teller showed the note to a co-worker, the man in the car indicated he was going to detonate the package, said police spokeswoman Andrea Davis.

The driver of the car then drove away empty-handed.

The building was quickly evacuated as police cordoned off the parking lot and closed portions of N 50th Street.

The package, which police initially thought contained wires and a timer, was retrieved by a state Fire Marshal Bomb Squad robot more than two hours after the incident began.

The machine detonated the package with a small thud. No injuries were reported.

Davis said police are viewing surveillance tapes to gather more visual evidence about the incident.

One thing police are sure of, however, is that they are taking their search for the would-be robber seriously. Attempted bank robbery is a felony, she said.

"It's a hoax, " Davis said. "But it is still a crime."

[Last modified June 20, 2007, 01:38:24]