Police in Nanaimo say a joke about a bomb threat at a north Nanaimo business was ill-conceived and not a laughing matter.
According to a Nanaimo RCMP press release, a woman thought it would be funny to call in a bomb threat to get out of working with another employee at about 5:30 p.m. Aug. 11. The woman texted another worker, jokingly telling her to call in the threat, but rather than phoning it in, the worker reported the incident to police, the press release said.
As a result, a police officer and a police service dog and its handler responded, doing a search of the store until it was determined there were no explosives on site, said the press release, and the business was closed during the incident.
Police spoke with the woman and made it clear that her attempt at humour could have led to criminal charges, said the press release. She was horrified and apologized to everyone involved and the incident is now concluded, the press release said.
Const. Gary O’Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesperson, said this isn’t the sort of thing to joke about.
“We’re not known for our humour when dealing with police incidents, especially those involving explosives,” O’Brien said in the press release.
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