A Waimea towing company was evacuated Tuesday morning after a possible explosive device was found attached to the front fender of a vehicle that was towed to the yard following a weekend “Freedom Ride” rally.
A Waimea towing company was evacuated Tuesday morning after a possible explosive device was found attached to the front fender of a vehicle that was towed to the yard following a weekend “Freedom Ride” rally.
An Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit arrived on scene about 6 p.m. Tuesday after police officers had blocked access to the Kauakea Street tow yard earlier in the day, and media and curious residents were cleared from the block.
“They told me to take my tow trucks and they’ll call me when I can come back,” said David McCollough, owner of Tow Guys east of Waimea, about what responders told him as he awaited the results of the day’s commotion.
McCollough said the mid-1980s Mercury Topaz had a round, cylindrical device attached under the bumper with two electrical wires leading into it. A man called the yard Monday claiming the vehicle belonged to the state and that the police stole it. The man appeared to be raving, but also tipped McCollough off that the car might be rigged.
“He said, ‘you should go look at the car. Trust me, you should look at the car,’” McCollough said.
The car, decked out with No Trespassing signs instead of license plates and statements associated with Freedom Ride in the windows, was towed from Saddle Road on Saturday at police request, McCollough said.
At the time, the tow truck driver noticed the canister but thought it was a homemade contraption to increase fuel economy, he said. McCollough himself gave the device a quick look Monday, but thought no more about it until the next day.
When McCollough lifted the hood Tuesday morning for a more thorough look, he found wires with a toggle switch leading to the battery. Then, he called the police.
“I said, this thing is wired to explode,” McCollough said.
A couple of arrests were made and vehicles impounded following the “Freedom Ride” on Saturday in Hilo. The group turned out without proper license plates or other requirements, intent on demonstrating that they have a constitutional “right to travel.”
Police did not immediately have information about who was driving the car at the time it was impounded or whether it was linked to the group.
An Army spokesperson on Oahu confirmed that an explosives disposal unit was sent to Waimea, but that comment was being deferred to Hawaii Police Department, the lead agency in the incident. Tuesday evening, HPD spokeswoman Chris Loos said the department was still sorting things out and would have more information today.
The dashboard and windows of the car held pieces of paper with statements such as “not for hire” and “removal will result in a $10,000 fine,” McCollough said.
Email Bret Yager at byager@westhawaiitoday.com.