Bag or a bomb? Repairman caught in a jam after tools trigger false alarm

[Ian David]

By Chris Ramirez
[e-mail]

He was supposed to work on the copier at the Pantex Plant north of Amarillo.

He ended the day getting grilled by authorities and having his tool bag retrieved by a bomb squad robot.

Plant officials evacuated Pantex's administrative offices and another building Monday, when someone reported a suspicious package in a lobby around 11:15 a.m., according to a statement by the plant.


Eloy Heras, right, with Laser Cartridge Recyclers, pleads his case to a Pantex security guard at a Highway 60 roadblock. Heras accidentally left his repair bag at the Pantex facility on Monday after repairing a copy machine. The bag was reported as a suspicious package and bomb threat.
Michael Schumacher / Amarillo Globe-News

All roads leading to the plant were closed by the Carson County Sheriff's Office during the episode.

The package turned out to be a bag carrying several copy repair tools and a hand-held vacuum belonging to Heras, manager of Laser Cartridge Recyclers.

Heras apparently forgot his tools and doubled back to get them.

When he returned, authorities were waiting for him.

"He left some tools and a vacuum. That's it. That's all that happened," said Don Dillard, an employee who answered the phone at the Amarillo-based business. "The way they (reacted) was a bunch of crap."



Carson County Sheriff's Department investigator Drew Brassfield directs traffic as a long line of Pantex employees are stopped at the Highway 60 roadblock Monday. Several employees, returning from lunch, were held up more than two hours.


More:
http://www.amarillo.com/stories/030607/new_6984559.shtml

[mike_c]

1. fear fear fear fear security security secturity-- your papers, please....

:nuke: