CLEARWATER, Fla. (WFLA) — A Clearwater man is behind bars after making false bomb threats, the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office announced Sunday.
Deputies said Jerome Lee Chambers, 48, was arrested in the parking lot of Dunedin City Hall after he threatened to kill people because he could not get into his employer’s payroll application to get paid.
Investigators said Chambers works for Marcman Solutions, which is contracted by the Florida Department of Emergency Management to hang door tags in the area to update residents on polling location changes due to the recent hurricanes.
Deputies said Chambers threatened to blow up people inside Dunedin City Hall multiple times after becoming increasingly upset. Witnesses said Chambers then walked to his vehicle and grabbed a black duffle bag, which caused witnesses in the area to flee.
Chambers was arrested and charged with one count of false report about planting a bomb, explosive, or weapon of mass destruction and one count of violation of probation.