Discarded Bag Causes Bomb Scare on Northampton Street

By Christina Georgiou


Easton police and the Northampton County Bomb Squad  investigate a handbag
dropped on the sidewalk along Northampton Street at Seventh Street
that was suspected to contain a bomb. Roads in the immediate area were
closed for nearly two hours, before it was determined the package was not
dangerous.



A bag dropped from a car along Northampton Street at Seventh Street late this morning caused a bomb scare that led to roads in the immediate area being closed for nearly two hours, as officials investigated the parcel.

Easton Police Sgt. Robert Weber said a bystander flagged down a Northampton County sheriff's car shortly after 11:30 a.m. after finding an abandoned black bag on the sidewalk on the sidewalk near the armory building and suspecting it might be a bomb.

A review of city surveillance camera footage showed a white four-door Buick had pulled up near the side of the road at the stop light and a passenger dropping the bag, before the car pulled away, he said.

Police, who arrived on the scene at 11:35 a.m., immediately shut down the road from Sixth to Ninth streets along Northampton Street, and from Church to Ferry streets along Seventh Street.

"Obviously we couldn't approach the bag because it was suspicious," Weber said.

The Northampton County Bomb Squad was called to the scene to determine the contents of the parcel.

The black bag, an imitation leather handbag, turned out to have a box inside, with another box inside that, along with a few incidental items, Weber said.

Roads were reopened to traffic at approximately 1:25 p.m.

Residents in the immediate area were not evacuated, though only residents of the affected blocks were allowed access during the investigation, which lasted nearly two hours.

"I really couldn't speculate why they threw the bag out of the car," he said, adding that there was nothing of value in the bag.

Weber said police don't have the license plate number of the vehicle, and the other contents of the bag have turned up no real leads toward identifying its possible owner.

"Everything else in the bag is turning up dead ends. It's old information," Weber said. "It turned out to be nothing, thank goodness."