The Washington State Patrol Bomb Squad searched WhidbeyHealth Medical Center in Coupeville Sunday morning based on a tip from the FBI, but nothing explosive was found, according to the Island County Sheriff’s Office.
Just after 7 a.m., federal agents notified the Island County Sheriff’s Office that someone had posted a message on Snapchat, an online app, that he had “planted 4 bombs in a children’s hospital,” according to a press release from the sheriff’s office. The FBI determined that the post came from a residence south of Coupeville.
The “children’s” area of the hospital was evacuated and access to the rest of the hospital was limited.
Washington State Patrol Bomb Squad technicians, along with “explosive detection dogs,” conducted a search of the hospital and no explosive devices were located, the press release states.
In the meantime, deputies with the sheriff’s office and the Coupeville Marshal’s Office responded to the residence where the post originated. After an investigation, deputies arrested a 14-year-old boy on suspicion of making a threat to bomb. He told investigators that he did it as a joke.
Investigators seized the boy’s computers and cell phone for analysis, pending a search warrant. He was booked into the Island County Juvenile Detention Facility pending his first court appearance.