A Goodwill employee in Wisconsin found an explosive device and ammunition while carrying out donation inventory, prompting local police to evacuate the store and its surrounding area Friday morning, officials say.
Janesville, Wisconsin, authorities are now looking for the person who purportedly donated the “suspicious device,” which has been confirmed to be a “live cluster bomblet,” WKOW reported, citing a media release from the Janesville Police Department.
BREAKING UPDATE
Janesville police confirmed the suspicious device was a “live cluster bomblet.” Authorities are working to identify the person who included it in their Goodwill donation. https://t.co/WakaJKqMsG
— WKOW 27 News (@WKOW) October 27, 2023
The Dane County Sheriff’s Office Bomb Squad went in and removed the explosive device to destroy it properly, police said. (RELATED: Goodwill Employee Finds WWII-Era Treasure Hidden In Donation’s Secret Compartment)
The Goodwill store decided to evacuate “out of precaution for shoppers, donors and employees,” according to WKOW, and resumed its shopping and donation operations at around 1:30 p.m.
A statement from the company urges residents to check Goodwill’s donation guidelines before making a donation, as some devices should be handed over to the police for safe disposal.
In July, a Goodwill employee in Oklahoma City found historical materials in a secret compartment of a donated tin box. The compartment contained a leather-bound book, a medal and honorable discharge papers from World War II.