Republic Wal-Mart evacuated thanks to phony bomb scare

A Republic man was arrested and booked into the Greene County Jail after he allegedly made a bomb threat at the Republic Wal-Mart, where he was an employee. Christopher William Henderson, 28, is charged with making a terrorist threat in the third degree, a Class A misdemeanor.
According to the probable cause statement, Republic Police officers were dispatched to Wal-Mart to deal with what they were originally told were “pythons.” When the officers arrived, a Wal-Mart manager clarified that the call was about pipe bombs. After the miscommunication was clarified, all available RPD officers came to the scene; Republic Fire Rescue and the Springfield Bomb Squad were also requested. Everyone was evacuated from Wal-Mart, the surrounding businesses and apartment buildings.
In the statement, the reporting officer stated a Wal-Mart manager said she was contacted by an employee who said while he and another employee were speaking outside of the store, Henderson walked by and told them he had hid bombs in the toy department and aisle 6 of the building.
Wal-Mart management reviewed surveillance footage and saw Henderson standing by his locker with a “long cylinder object” in his hand. They also called the Wal-Mart home office to notify them of the threat, as well as 911.
After the store had been evacuated, Henderson returned to Wal-Mart and stood at the Murphy’s gas station. Officers placed him under arrest and, after being read his Miranda Rights, told one of the officers he thought he knew the employee to whom he allegedly made the comment to “joke” with her when he said he put the bombs in Wal-Mart. The officer asked about the cylindrical object he was seen with; Henderson said it was a playmat.
Later, in a post-Miranda interview at the Republic Police Department, Henderson again claimed he was “joking around” with the employee he made the comments to. Asked what made him make the comments to the employee, he said he was “just like jawing with a couple of co-workers.” He also said, “I said something along the lines of, ‘You have 30 minutes’ or something like that.”
Henderson said he was in another store when he heard about the bomb threat, so he returned to speak to a manager and explain, which was when he was arrested. The interviewing officer asked about the cylindrical tube, and Henderson again said it was playmat rolled into the tube, and then clarified that it was a placemat for playing cards. Asked if he had placed anything in aisle 6 of the store or anywhere else in the building, Henderson said he had not.
According to the statement, Henderson consented to a search of his apartment, during which nothing was found but some writings in reference to Hitler and demolition, which were photographed. The Wal-Mart building was cleared by the bomb squad at about 7:45 that evening.
The employee to whom Henderson allegedly made the comments was interviewed by police. She said Henderson told her that he had hidden bombs in the toy department and aisle 6 of the store as he was leaving for the day. She also said he was smiling as he said that and also told her he was just joking; she also said she took his comments as a joke.
The employee who reported Henderson’s alleged comments was also interviewed; he said that Henderson made a comment about not going to aisle 6 or the toy department in the store because he had planted bombs there. He also said Henderson was smiling when he said this and said he was joking. The employee also said he was “90-percent sure” that Henderson had been joking and 10-percent wondering if it was true.”
As of press time, Henderson remained in the Greene County Jail in lieu of a $5,000 open-court bond. If he is released on bond, he will be placed under house arrest and monitored with a GPS device.
A media request for comment sent to the Wal-Mart corporate office in Bentonville had received no response as of press time.