Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Articles and links about local geocachers in the news.

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TeamMina
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Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

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***12/29/2008 "The Urbana Daily Citizen"***

Suspicious behavior and a mysterious item stashed in the base of a light pole near Tim Hortons caused the Wright-Patterson Bomb Squad to be called Sunday night, but the entire incident is part of an "innocent game."

According to Urbana Police Division Lt. Matt Lingrell, a Tim Hortons employee reportedly saw someone put something inside the base of the light pole around 5:20 p.m. The item appeared to be film canisters taped together and held to the pole with magnets, stoking fears of a bomb. UPD evacuated Tim Hortons, Odd Lots and Save-A-Lot while the Ohio State Highway Patrol and Champaign County Sheriff's Office assisted to block intersections nearby on Scioto Street.

When the bomb squad arrived and examined the item, it was found to be part of Geocache, a worldwide game of hiding and seeking "treasure." A geocacher can place a geocache in the world, pinpoint its location using GPS technology and then share the geocache's existence and location online. Anyone with a GPS unit can then try to locate the geocache, according to the Web site http://www.geocaching.com.

The unit was placed in the base of a light pole near Tim Hortons on Nov. 2, according to Lingrell, and the individual who aroused suspicion on Sunday was the innocent "player" who found it.

Lingrell said there are other Geocache items planted around the region as part of the game, which dictates that "explosives, ammunition, knives, drugs and alcohol should not be placed in a cache," the Web site explains.


***12.29.2008 2nd version of story from "Springfield News-Sun"***

URBANA, Ohio — The Internet-based geocaching game led to a bomb scare in Urbana on Sunday night, Dec. 28.

Employees from Tim Hortons, 759 Scioto St., flagged down Urbana Police Department officers about 5:46 p.m. Sunday after seeing a man lifting up the metal base of a lamp pole, Urbana Police Lt. Matt Lingrell said.

The man drove off when officers arrived. Police found 35-mm film canisters with a metal plate and electrical tape in the post, Lingrell said, and considered it suspicious-looking.

"It didn't look like anything good," he said.

Tim Hortons and the nearby Save-A-Lot and Odd Lots stores were evacuated and cordoned off. The Wright-Patterson Air Force Base bomb squad was called to investigate the items.

Police also checked the man's license plate and an Urbana detective went to his Enon home with Enon police. The man told the detective that he was playing geocaching, a game that calls for finding hidden objects sometimes using GPS devices to track coordinates listed on Web sites.

"It's like a treasure hunt," Lingrell said.

The bomb squad used its robot to check the items in the post and declared them safe. Upon opening the canisters, investigators found paper with numbers and the names of players who had found the object written on it.

Investigators also tracked down the man who placed the canisters in the lamp post in early November.

The stores reopened about 8:40 p.m. Sunday. Urbana police will present the information to a prosecutor, possibly today, to determine if any charges should be filed. The state patrol and Champaign County sheriff's deputies also responded.


***1/2/2009 Taking perhaps an interest, the same "Springfield News-Sun" ran this article 3 says later***

Clark County catches geocache craze
Do you geocache?
By Megan Gildow

Springfield, Ohio — The Zeller family has come out of street tunnels covered in mud, reached into coffins and climbed trees together.

All in the name of geocaching.

The globetrotters' game of hiding and hunting treasures has reached more than 100 countries, including Antarctica, and the techie/outdoor fanatics craze has reached Clark County too.

Geocachers can hide a treasure anywhere, then pinpoint its location using Global Positioning technology. The location, or clues to the location, are then posted to a Web site like geocaching.com, for others to use to locate the treasure, which includes a log book for finders to leave their mark and sometimes treasures that can be traded for something the finder leaves behind.

More than 150 of the various species of geocaches are hidden within ten miles of downtown Springfield, said enthusiast Dave Zeller.

The Zeller family, including Dave, his father William, and the grandchildren, enjoy the sport as a family activity.

"We like to have it as a family affair," said William. "All of the grandkids are into technology so they enjoy that aspect of it and it's also good for exercise."

Geocaches must always be hidden on public property or with consent from the property owner or manager and can be in the middle of a city - like Springfield's downtown Esplanade — or out in the woods — John Bryant State Park is a popular local hunting and hiding ground.

"I love to geocache," said 6-year-old Zach Forshey, William's grandson. "It's my favorite game. You get to walk around, see things. It's pretty cool."
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McCombRef
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by McCombRef »

I think we have here a little overzealous police department. Bombing a light pole at a Tim Hortons has to be a high rank on the potential top terrorist target sites.
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by jimbobwe »

I guess i should remove that micro i have at the Tim Hortons in Sylvania.Actually i should remove all my micros,come to think of it..
[url=http://www.geocaching.com/profile/?A=451190:13md21ta][img:13md21ta]http://img.groundspeak.com/stats/img.aspx?txt=LAST+of+the+Old+Skewl+Painters!&uid=dd47e1d9-c2c1-4f37-aa81-7de8c491521a&bg=1[/img:13md21ta][/url:13md21ta]
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by GizmoGuy411 »

As many of us have said to each other before..... if 9/11 occurred before they dropped "Selective Availability", there would probably not be such a thing as Geocaching today!

TeamMina. Please keep us abreast to whether anyone gets prosecuted or not from this incident.

What catch-all law(s) do you think they would use? How about, criminal trespass, littering, public nuisance, inciting a riot, or vandalism?
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by cachergirl27 »

It's Urbana, they'll use anything! The cops there are awful and it's a small town in Southern Ohio. If the people who placed it are under 25, they'll think of some charge as usual. Not that I'm bitter, I've just had experience with cops in that area.
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by McCombRef »

Small town police department + College = cash cow students and made up charges.
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by cachergirl27 »

McCombRef wrote:Small town police department + College = cash cow students and made up charges.
Actually Private College so definitely Cash Cow! :!:
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by TheBearclaws »

This cache was unarchived today because the owner received permission for its placement.
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by TeamMina »

Looks like their won't be any indictments, but we'll keep an eye out.

Isn't that the sort of thing which bans you from being allowed to place caches for 6 months anyway?
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by T-Hunter »

Under the 1/2/2009 article "Springfield, Ohio — The Zeller family has come out of street tunnels covered in mud, reached into coffins and climbed trees together."

C'mon....COFFINS?
What the?????
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by GizmoGuy411 »

thunter16148 wrote:Under the 1/2/2009 article "Springfield, Ohio — The Zeller family has come out of street tunnels covered in mud, reached into coffins and climbed trees together."

C'mon....COFFINS?
What the?????
Huh??? I had to check it outl You read it right thunter16148, and TeamMina posted it right too.

Here's the link to the actual acticle including the reporter's phone nuber and email address in case anyone wants to check it out further.

http://nl.newsbank.com/nl-search/we/Arc ... _docnum=37

If you plan on contacting her, please post your intent here so that she does not get too many contacts. :shakehead:
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by cheechgang »

Aw come on, who hasn't reached into a coffin???
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by yogi57 »

Sounds like somebody been watching "National Treasures"
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Re: Geocaching Creates Bomb-Scare in Urbana, OH

Post by OnDHunt »

cheechgang wrote:Aw come on, who hasn't reached into a coffin???
I came close yesterday, but Cheech made me do it!
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