Man arrested in connection with suspicious bag that prompted shutdown of Torrance courthouse
A Redondo Beach man was arrested Friday in connection with a suspicious bag that was left outside the Torrance courthouse this week, authorities said.
The courthouse was evacuated around 7 a.m. Wednesday after the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department responded to a call regarding a suspicious package approximately 30 feet from the main entrance.
Sheriff’s Arson Explosives Detail bomb technicians deployed a robot to safely assess and render the package safe, authorities said. The area was declared safe at 10:15 a.m., but the courthouse remained closed for the rest of the day as a precautionary measure.
Sheriff’s detectives and the Torrance Police Department investigated the incident and identified a suspect: a 56-year-old man from Redondo Beach, authorities said.
A bag seemingly abandoned on a bench prompted the shutdown of the Torrance courthouse early Wednesday and drew the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s bomb squad to the scene.
The man, whose name was not released, was arrested Friday in the 2200 block of Belmont Lane on suspicion of using a destructive device, according to the Sheriff’s Department.
He was booked at the Torrance Police Department and is being held in lieu of $500,000 bail, according to authorities.
A law enforcement source familiar with the situation told The Times that the package at the Torrance courthouse “for sure was intended to hurt someone.” The source also said that surveillance video captured a man leaving the package along with a note that indicated a desire to cause harm and included claims that the man had “killed before.”
Times staff writer Keri Blakinger contributed to this report.
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