Law enforcement officials and merchants are looking into a recent spate of bomb threats that have been made against grocery chains and other businesses around the country.
According to the report, several retail chains have recently received bomb threats at their locations, including Kroger, Walmart, and Amazon’s Whole Foods Market. The report also stated that some callers demanded gift cards, bitcoin, or cash and threatened to detonate bombs if payments were not made.
From Wisconsin to New Mexico, these dangers have expanded to numerous locations. An employee at a Kroger-owned business in New Mexico received a call from a suspect who demanded money over the phone and threatened to detonate a bomb if she called the police.
According to the Wall Street Journal, a similar incident involving a caller informing a Whole Foods Market employee that a pipe bomb had been planted in the store and demanding $5,000 in bitcoin was reported in a town north of Chicago.
According to the publication, the FBI stated that it is collaborating with local and state law enforcement authorities and urged the public to stay alert to their surroundings and report any suspicious activity to the authorities.
Authorities are unsure if the threats are a result of a coordinated effort, according to the newspaper.
