Arroyo Grande -- We are learning more about the man police say phoned in a bomb threat to a central coast Walmart store. Officers arrested a Templeton man who is now facing a felony charge for the threat.
Monday night a Walmart employee got the phoned in bomb threat about 9 o'clock and all employees and customers in the store were evacuated.
Arroyo Grande Police Chief Steven Annibali says, "We take these things very seriously and any kind of threat or bomb threat like this does expend a lot of money for a public safety response also for the business in this case Walmart, they had to evacuate the building we had to call in people."
Police, Sheriff's deputies, the bomb squad, and State Parks' bomb sniffing dogs all responded to investigate the threat. After a search of the building and parking lot no explosive device was found.
Arroyo Grande Police worked with Walmart employees and AT&T to locate 53 year old Daniel McPherson, who investigators say made the phony bomb threat.
Police say when McPherson was arrested he admitted to hearing news reports about recent bomb threats made at Walmart stores in other states.
McPherson's criminal record in San Luis Obispo County shows he was charged with assault and battery in 2010 and bad check writing in 2005.
According to Macpherson's Facebook page he is a sales rep for a guitar company and he has pictures of himself playing guitar in a local Christian band called Livingstone based in Templeton.
Arroyo Grande Police say it is now up to the District Attorney's Office to pursue charges against Daniel McPherson. He was booked into county jail with bail set at 10-thousand dollars.
