ST. CLAIRSVILLE, Ohio — An 18-year-old is facing multiple felony charges after a series of bomb threats Tuesday forced eight businesses at the Ohio Valley Plaza to evacuate and triggered a large-scale emergency response across Belmont County.
Larry Allen Harvey was taken into custody at a St. Clairsville hotel after the Belmont County Sheriff’s Office traced multiple threats to a single phone number. Authorities did not provide a permanent address for Harvey.
The incidents began around 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 24 when law enforcement received the first call reporting a bomb threat at the Walmart on Valley Plaza Drive. The caller claimed a bomb was inside and warned employees they had 10 minutes to evacuate. Officers from the Richland Township Police Department, Belmont County Sheriff’s Office and Cumberland Trail Fire Department responded. Bomb-detecting K-9 units from the Wheeling Police Department swept the store but found no explosives.
Additional threats followed throughout the afternoon, targeting Kroger, Sheetz, Whitesides, Unified Bank, Texas Roadhouse, Denny’s and the Red Roof Inn. In several cases, the caller demanded money and threatened to detonate explosives if his demands were not met.
During the evacuation at Kroger, a customer was struck by a vehicle. The person’s condition was not released.
Working with the Ohio State Highway Patrol’s Intelligence Fusion Center and cellular service providers, investigators determined the threats originated from the same phone number and tracked Harvey to a nearby hotel, where he was arrested.
Authorties said Harvey admitted to making the calls and told investigators he did it for fun, monitoring law enforcement responses on a police scanner.
Belmont County Sheriff James Zusack said Harvey showed little remorse but quickly learned the consequences of his actions. Harvey faces five counts of making terrorist threats, a first-degree felony, and five counts of inducing panic, a third-degree felony. He was booked into the Belmont County Jail on a one million dollar bond. The case has been submitted to the Belmont County Prosecutor’s Office for formal charges.
