By CASSANDRA SHOFAR
Staff Writer

MEDINA — A shopping plaza was evacuated Friday night, a section of North Court Street was closed off and the Summit County Bomb squad showed up, all for an empty cardboard box.

At 5:09 p.m., a U.S. Army recruiter reported a suspicious package underneath a vehicle parked outside the Armed Forces recruiting station at 907 N. Court St., which is inside the Medina Shopping Center, police said.

“The package was a cardboard box located beneath the gas tank of the passenger car,” police said. “Medina police responded and began an immediate evacuation of the area, including local businesses, and restricting vehicular traffic on nearby streets.”

A Remotec Andros 6A robot operated by the Summit County Bomb Squad removes a suspicious package from beneath a government vehicle parked in the Medina Shopping Center lot on Friday. (Andrew Dolph | Staff Photographer)

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“The military, a month ago, had received some intelligence that there was a threat to kidnap and/or kill a recruiter,” Detective Kirk Vozar said, who added recruiters have been more cautious since then.

“The recruiter (who noticed the box) said it looked dry and like it was placed there under the gas tank,” he said. “It just looked out of place.”

While the Summit County Bomb Squad was on its way, city, Medina Township and Montville Township police, county sheriff’s deputies and fire department units maintained a perimeter around the plaza, police said.

Around 7 p.m., members of the bomb squad arrived and used a robot, called Andros 6A, to inspect the box and determine its contents while law enforcement, firefighters, agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and the FBI stood in the cold, nervously waiting.

“At 7:38 p.m., they concluded the package was not a threat and the all-clear was given, with streets and buildings allowed to be returned to normal use,” police reported.

Vozar said the box was empty and possibly had blown out of nearby trash bins.

“We … appreciate the patience and cooperation of the business owners, employees and citizens who were adversely affected by this perceived threat,” police said. “Thank you all.”

Shofar may be reached at 330-721-4044 or cshofar@ohio.net.