Threat to Mall Deters Shoppers

An anonymous threat against an unspecified mall on the Westside on Thursday drove away shoppers and prompted increased security citywide.

Although law enforcement agencies have received hundreds of tips about possible threats, officials issued a rare public notice about this one because it involved a specific date and a general location: a mall near the Federal Building in West Los Angeles.

Despite increased police patrols and security at malls citywide, many would-be shoppers decided to avoid the risk. At the Westside Pavilion and Westfield Shoppingtown Century City, merchants said they noticed fewer people than on most Thursdays.

David Gonzalez, a maitre’d at Harper’s restaurant in Century City, looked at his watch at 12:55 p.m. and noted 10 empty tables.

“By 1 o’clock we’re supposed to be full,” he said.

Missing from that mall was 32-year-old Bo Alexander, a commodities trader who usually takes the five-minute walk there from his office. But on Thursday he had promised his girlfriend that he wouldn’t. Instead, he packed his lunch and ate at the office.

“She tends to err on the side of caution,” Alexander said.

At the Westside Pavilion, news helicopters hovered above the deserted shopping plaza. Several businesses were closed, including Music ‘N’ Me, where children learn to play instruments.

“I called all of the parents of all of my classes today and told them the situation because I had been in the [New York] attacks on Sept. 11,” said music teacher Jennifer Almiron, 28. “Nothing is more important to me than the safety of the children.”

Mall operators said they spent the day reassuring merchants and consumers that they were safe. Gene Thompson, vice president of corporate security at Macerich Co., which owns the Westside Pavilion, said his company talked to vendors about increased security.

But Thompson said he wasn’t worried about a threat. “Most of the time when we get a bomb threat, we’re pretty sure it’s coming from employees looking for an early afternoon,” he said.

At a news conference at The Grove shopping center, Police Chief William J. Bratton called the public warning “strictly precautionary.”

Federal authorities received the tip several days ago, Bratton said, allowing law enforcement officials to analyze the information and to notify police and mall operators before issuing the public alert.

“There was no specificity as to what the nature of the terrorist action would be,” Bratton said. “ ... There was other information I’m not at liberty to disclose.”

Bratton said law enforcement also took the mall threat seriously because it came shortly after the release of a purported Osama bin Laden tape pledging more terrorist actions against the U.S.