BOCA RATON, Fla. — Boca Raton Police evacuated the Town Center Mall after receiving a threatening phone call just after 4 p.m. Saturday afternoon.
According to police, the caller advised they were parked on the north side of the parking lot with guns and bombs, and the desire to kill.
The city's bomb team was called on scene for the investigation and the mall was prompted to evacuate at around 5 p.m.
Police said the car that was a focus of the investigation had been rented by Cody Conrod, a popular Twitch user by the name of "Clix."
To clarify, Conrod was NOT placed under arrest. He was initially detained based on the information received; however, he was cooperative and helpful with the investigation.
— Boca Raton Police (@BocaPolice) September 15, 2024
Swatting calls are taken seriously and we continue to investigate who made the threat. @BocaPolice
Conrod was detained inside the mall during the course of the investigation and assisted police by providing them with information. He told them he believed the threat may have come from one of his viewers as a hoax because he was live streaming inside the mall.
Shoppers told WPTV Reporter Cassandra Garcia that they were surprised to see the heavy police presence when they walked outside.
“We had no idea what was going on, walked out and just saw tons of cops and tons of cars and lights,” Hayley Johnson said.
We're told the mall was evacuated around 5pm as a precaution.
Those working inside said they were asked to follow lock-down protocols.
“Lots of panicking and people just trying to leave the mall running out,” sales associate Taha Yaagoubi said.
A section of the parking lot was taped off while police investigated. Some shoppers had to wait several hours to pick up their cars from the lot.
The mall remained closed for the rest of the evening.
Investigators determined the threat was a swatting call and are still searching for the person responsible.
“Hopefully they see repercussions because there's a lot of resources being put to use for something like this," sales associate Steven Low said.
