Boston highway shut down over suspicious package
Wed Jan 31, 2007 9:41am ET

BOSTON (Reuters) - A section of highway north of Boston and a busy public transportation hub just outside of the city were shut down on Wednesday morning in the midst of the busy rush hour as police investigated a "suspicious package."

A bomb squad unit was trying to get close to the package which witnesses said looked like it had wires sticking out of it, a spokesman for the region's public transportation agency said.

"The package is on an elevated structure and they are trying to get at it with a cherry picker," MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said.

The shutdown affected part of the northbound section of route 93, police said and it affected hundreds of passengers on area subways and buses.

"They're shutting it down for public safety," State Police Lt. Eric Anderson said.

Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Four more suspicious objects found

By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff

Investigators found a device on the BU Bridge today "similar to the Sullivan Square" package that forced the closure this morning of northbound Interstate 93, said Jennifer Mieth, spokeswoman for State Fire Marshal Stephen Coan, whose office oversees the State Police Bomb Squad.

Like the item found at the Sullivan Square station, the BU package was attached to the underpinnings of the bridge.

"It was not an explosive device," she said of the suspicious item found on the BU Bridge.

Mieth said State Police bomb experts are now examining a another suspicious item -- similar in construction to the items found at Sullivan station and on the BU Bridge -- that has been discovered attached to the Longfellow Bridge, which spans the Charles River from Boston to Cambridge.

Boston police are separately investigating suspicious items at Columbus and Stuart streets and near the New England Medical Center, Boston police said.

He said MBTA police were told about the package by a transit passenger who spotted it on a column that supports Interstate 93. The parcel was located on an elevated structure above the bus way and below I-93 in the Charlestown section of Boston at about 8 a.m.

"This is a perfect example of our passengers taking part in Homeland Security," Venturelli said.

An investigation will be conducted into how the package got there and when, he said.

"They have been in place for two to three weeks in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Austin, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. Parent company Turner Broadcasting is in contact with local and federal law enforcement on the exact locations of the billboards. We regret that they were mistakenly thought to pose any danger."

"No matter who did this, I think there's probably enough evidence I think the Boston Police Department, the bureau, state police — everybody will probably get together … I wouldn't be surprised to see someone charged in this. This is an extremely serious situation," former FBI Director Bill Gavin told FOX News during the investigation.

"Whoever did this — whether it be kids or adults — if they think it's funny, I think they'll soon learn it's not that much of a humorous situation."

Let me ask you this: If one of those packages, just one, had been the real deal and killed people, would you still be laughing at Boston? Walk a mile in our shoes, and only then, give me your answer.

Arrest Made In Boston's Hoax Device Incident
"Devices" Were Part Of A Marketing Campaign
Menino Wants Turner To Reimburse Cities

(WBZ) BOSTON Boston police say they have made in arrest in connection to the suspicious device scare that turned out to be a marketing ploy for a television cartoon. The Peter Berdvosky was arrested in Arlington Wednesday night and charged under a recently enacted statute making it a crime to place a hoax device that results in panic.

The scare forced bomb units to scramble across Boston all day. The "devices" were actually magnetic lights which resemble a character on the show "Aqua Teen Hunger Force", on Turner Broadcasting's Cartoon Network.

WBZ spoke with the Berdvosky's lawyer and legal guardian Michael Rich, who said the Mass. College of Art student did cooperate with police. Rich also tells us the suspect is an exchange student from Belarus.

"It's very disturbing," said Rich, "that what was just (an) employment for a struggling artist turned into some major misunderstanding."

Berdvosky was apparently working for InterferenceInc.com, which was the company hired by Cartoon Network to carry out the ad campaign. He will be arraigned at Charlestown District Court on Thursday morning.

The suspicious device reports forced the temporary shutdowns of Interstate 93 out of the city, a key inbound roadway, a bridge between Boston and Cambridge, and a portion of the Charles River but were quickly determined not to be explosive.

"It's a hoax -- and it's not funny," Gov. Deval Patrick said.

"We apologize to the citizens of Boston that part of a marketing campaign was mistaken for a public danger....We deeply regret the hardships experienced as a result of this incident," said Turner Broadcasting Chair and CEO Phil Kent in a writen statement.

More Than ten devices were found in Boston, Cambridge and Somerville. Attorney General Martha Coakley believes 38 of the light up boards were planted throughout the city.

The first device was found at an MBTA subway and bus station located under Interstate 93 on Wednesday morning. The device was detonated and determined to be harmless, but as a precaution the station and the interstate shut down temporarily.

Then, around 1 p.m., four calls came into Boston Police reporting suspicious devices at the Boston University Bridge and the Longfellow Bridge, which both span the Charles River, and the corner of Stuart and Columbus Streets and at the Tufts-New England Medical Center.

Another device was found in Somerville under the McGrath Highway Bridge. The latest package was found outside Fenway Park around 5:30 p.m.

Mayor Menino said the hoax cost the state and cities about $750,000. He wants Turner Broadcasting to pay for it all.

“It is outrageous, in a post 9/11 world, that a company would use this type of marketing scheme. I am prepared to take any and all legal action against Turner Broadcasting and its affiliates for any and all expenses incurred during the response to today’s incidents. Boston will look to coordinate our efforts going forward with Cambridge, Somerville and any other affected agencies.”

"Aqua Teen Hunger Force" is a cartoon with a cultish following that airs as part of the Adult Swim late-night block of programs for adults on the Cartoon Network. A feature length film based on the show is slated for release March 23.

The surreal series centers on a talking milkshake (Master Shake), fries (Frylock) and a meatball (Meatwad).

The cartoon also includes two trouble-making, 1980s-graphic-like characters called "mooninites," named Ignignokt and Err -- who were pictured on the suspicious devices. They are known for making the obscene hand gesture depicted on the devices.

It said the devices have been in place for two to three weeks in 10 cities: Boston; New York; Los Angeles; Chicago; Atlanta; Seattle; Portland, Ore.; Austin, Texas; San Francisco; and Philadelphia.