THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Saturday, June 10, 1995 TAG: 9506100315
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B3 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY STEVE STONE, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: VIRGINIA BEACH LENGTH: Medium: 61 lines
A 29-year-old man was charged with two felony counts of making bomb threats Friday night in a bizarre dispute with a car rental company that forced police to close a heavily traveled road.
Richard P. Beddard, of the 300 block of Garrison Place in Virginia Beach, was being held without bond Friday night after he was arrested by investigators from the Fire Department.
Police said they had to close South Lynnhaven Parkway after Beddard left a car parked there that he later claimed might contain explosives. No bomb was found.
Police spokesman Mike Carey said Beddard was not very cooperative with police. ``He's kind of talking out of both sides of his mouth. One minute he's saying there's nothing in the car, and next he says he wouldn't go near it.''
Police said the incident began Friday afternoon when the car, a Chrysler Concorde that Beddard had rented from Thrifty Car Rental, apparently began causing him problems on South Lynnhaven Parkway. Beddard left the car in the parking lot of a lawyer's office and called the car rental company, police said.
A Thrifty employee met Beddard and went with him to the car to check on the problem. While there, police said, Beddard made statements suggesting there was a bomb in the car.
The employee left and reported the incident. Shortly after, Beddard turned up at the car rental office at Montgomery Ward.
``He showed up at the car rental place and said he wanted another car. They said, `No way,' '' Carey said. ``He then said he was going to come back and put a bomb in Montgomery Ward.''
As a result, police cordoned off the area around the car and closed several blocks of normally busy South Lynnhaven Parkway while they brought in explosives experts. Late Friday, technicians were still checking the vehicle, although there were no signs of explosives.
The incident disrupted life in the residential area, making it difficult for some people to reach or leave their homes. Police did not evacuate anyone, although residents were advised of what was going on. About 30 people gathered at one roadblock to watch, and police sometimes had to chase down spectators wandering too close to the scene in a nearby business park.
Meanwhile, the McDonald's restaurant at the corner of Lynnhaven Parkway and South Lynnhaven Road had to close because the road blocks prevented customers from reaching it.
KEYWORDS: BOMB THREAT ARREST by CNB