SAN FRANCISCO – Police defused an explosive device found in the bathroom of a Starbucks on Monday. No one was injured.
Authorities were called around 1:15 p.m., after an employee reported finding something suspicious in the store's bathroom. About 100 people were evacuated from the store and apartments above it, and the street was closed to traffic, said Sgt. Neville Gittens.
"This was a good device. If it had exploded, it would have caused injuries or damage," said Gittens, who would not describe its size.
Once the device was disabled at about 2:10 p.m., police allowed people back into the apartment building and reopened the street. The store, located at a busy city intersection, remained closed Monday evening while authorities investigated.
Seattle-based Starbucks declined to provide further details.
In 2003, police said the windows of 17 Starbucks stores were clouded with glue and some of the door locks were jammed. Vandals also posted phony notices purporting to be from Starbucks management announcing the company's intention to abandon some of their San Francisco stores to make room for more locally owned coffee houses.
Get all the stories you need-to-know from the most powerful name in news delivered first thing every morning to your inbox