Chester Walmart evacuated after threat; SC agents on scene, cops say
A Chester Walmart was evacuated Friday morning after a threat was investigated at the store, police said.
All customers and employees at the store on the J.A Cochran Bypass were evacuated around 11 a.m. by Chester Police Department officers, said MaKeesharia Tobias, police department spokesperson.
A team from South Carolina’s State Law Enforcement Division searched the building and found no suspicious packages or threats, Tobias said.
Police later cleared the scene and the store reopened for employees, Tobias said.
The incident remains under investigation by Chester and South Carolina officials.
The Chester News & Reporter reported a SLED bomb squad and K-9 dog looking for a suspicious package cleared the scene after other nearby businesses also were evacuated during the incident.
Susan Robinson told The Herald she was on her way to Walmart when she saw the parking lot was blocked off by yellow tape.
“I went past it because I was planning to go to Walmart, and I thought there had been some sort of shooting,” she said. “It looked significant.”
She said there were about 100 cars in the parking lot, along with police and evacuated shoppers.
This story was originally published December 28, 2018 at 12:38 PM.
