Devices explode at Eagle Ridge Mall & more suspicious items found

Police are looking for a man who was seen running away from a Lake Wales mall after two devices exploded there on Sunday.

At 5:22 p.m., firefighters responded to an alarm call that turned into a structure fire call at Eagle Ridge Mall at 451 Eagle Ridge Dr.

At a press conference Sunday evening, Deputy Chief Troy Schulze, a spokesperson for the City of Lake Wales, said two devices were detonated in a service corridor near JCPenney. We previously reported the devices were pipe bombs. Authorities have since clarified, saying the devices that went off were actually a type of flare in a PVC pipe that was wrapped in electrical tape.

The corridor was located away from shoppers near a loading dock where the store receives deliveries. No one was hurt, but there was damage to a drop ceiling and the mall was evacuated as a precaution.

Police are also inspecting another suspicious device that was left near the mall’s movie theater.

Witnesses told detectives they saw a middle-aged white male with a heavy/stocky build running away from the scene. He was wearing a gray shirt and a gray hat before the explosion. He is now considered a “person of interest” in this case.

Anyone with information is asked to contact Lake Wales Police Detective Whitney Dukes at (863)678-4223 or Heartland Crime Stoppers at (800) 226-8477.