Sheriff: Bomb threat evacuates Cole County Courthouse

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. (KMIZ)

UPDATE: Cole County Sheriff John Wheeler tweeted at about 2:20 p.m. that the courthouse scene was clear and authorities did not find a bomb.

Sheriff Wheeler said someone called 911 dispatch from a cell phone around 1 p.m. claiming there was a bomb inside the Cole County Courthouse.

Law enforcement inside the courthouse was notified to have everyone evacuate the building.

"We notified the bailiffs, and they began evacuation, we didn't think it was a credible threat, just because the building has been secured for the last two months, no one's been in or out of it but to be on the safe side we did bring in Capitol Police," Wheeler said.

Capitol Police brought in a bomb dog to sniff out the perimiter as well as some of the public access areas inside the building.

Capitol Police were able to determine there was no bomb inside the building and get everyone back inside around 2 p.m.

Wheeler said the investigation is ongoing and they will be checking cameras in the area for any leads.

"Pretty confident we're gonna find who it is," Wheeler said. "There's plenty of video around this area so we'll be looking at the video."

ORIGINAL: The Cole County Courthouse was evacuated Tuesday afternoon because of a bomb threat.

Details were not immediately available, but Sheriff John Wheeler confirmed the evacuation and asked the public to avoid the area in a tweet.

Jefferson City police tweeted they were at the courthouse directing traffic around the area.

Check back for updates to this developing story.