Huntington Beach : Bomb Threat Closes Five Points Center

The Five Points Shopping Center in Huntington Beach was evacuated for three hours Thursday after the management received a bomb threat, police said. A search by police and employees of the 15-store shopping center at the intersection of Beach Boulevard and Ellis Avenue uncovered no bomb, Police Lt. John Foster said.

At 10 a.m. Thursday, the shopping center’s manager received a phone call from an anonymous caller who said a bomb had been hidden in one of the stores and was timed to explode at 11:40 a.m., Foster said. The caller made no demands.

The manager then called police, who cleared shoppers from stores in about 15 minutes, Foster said. After a complete search of the shopping center by three police officers and employees of the stores revealed no bomb, the shopping center reopened about 1 p.m., Foster said.