Rodeo Drive Reopened After Briefcase Prompts Evacuations
Police sealed off a square block area after a man tried to deliver a briefcase to a literary agent
Thursday, Aug 11, 2011 | Updated 12:40 PM PDT
A street sign stands at the corner of Via Rodeo and Rodeo Drive.
A man who tried to deliver a briefcase to a literary agent prompted a two-hour evacuation on Rodeo Drive and street closures Thursday in Beverly Hills.
The man walked into an office on Rodeo Drive at about 9 a.m. with a briefcase that he said contained a computer, said Sgt. Brad Cornelius. The man left instructions for the briefcase to be delivered to someone at the agency, but the intended recipient told authorities the man had been "pestering" him to read his movie script and that he never requested the briefcase.
After a security guard took the case into an alley, a bomb squad robot was used to examine the briefcase. The briefcase was blown open.
It did not contain explosives and the evacuation was lifted. Authorities sealed off a square block around the agency and traffic in the area was jammed.
Police detained the man for questioning.
