The driver of a cargo truck that caused a scare on Sunday outside a convenience store by playing audio similar to what was heard in a recreational vehicle that exploded in downtown Nashville is facing criminal charges, an office in the city said. Tennessee sheriff.
The Rutherford county sheriff’s office said Sunday night that church members and customers at the market nearby where the truck was spotted on Sunday morning heard the driver playing an audio “similar to what was heard” before the trailer exploded. downtown Nashville on Christmas Day.
Sgt. Steve Craig said deputies were called in to investigate reports of the trucker playing “loud” audio outside the market and later learned that the man was also accused of similar actions outside a church during a service.
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The sheriff’s office said in a statement that driver James Turgeon, 33, was arrested and charged with two counts of crime of presenting a false report and one charge of tampering with evidence. Authorities say Turgeon was accused of tampering with evidence because he “intentionally damaged the speaker system wiring”.
The Tennessee highway patrol said a robot was sent to investigate the truck and no devices were found.
Turgeon is held for $ 500,000 bonds, officials said.
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The previous Sunday, police received reports of a “suspicious” box truck parked at Crossroads Market in Walter Hill County around 10:30 am.
Authorities say the driver left the parking lot, was stopped and detained by the authorities. Law enforcement officers closed a section of the highway in neighboring Wilson County while authorities sent a robot to investigate.
No explosive devices were detected, said Tennessee Highway Patrol Lieutenant Bill Miller.
Investigators work at the site of an explosion on Saturday, December 26, 2020, in Nashville, Tennessee. The explosion that shook the deserted streets of downtown Nashville early on Christmas morning shattered windows, damaged buildings and injured three people. (AP Photo / Mark Humphrey)
Also on Sunday, authorities identified the suspect in the Christmas Day bomb attack as 63-year-old Anthony Quinn Warner. The police considered Warner a person of interest in the attack since at least Saturday, when federal and local investigators converged on the house linked to him.
The attack took place on Christmas Day, well before the city center streets began to move, and was accompanied by a taped announcement warning anyone nearby that a bomb was going to explode soon. Then the audio changed to a recording of Petula Clark’s 1964 hit “Downtown”, just before the explosion.
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Warner was killed in the explosion. The authorities have not publicly stated the reason for the case.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.