ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — A Pinellas County Sheriff's deputy surrendered his job after he allegedly sent a toy bomb as a joke.
Now, he faces charges.
- Deputy admitted to sending toy bomb as a joke
- Bomb squad was called in and determined the item was a toy
- Deputy James Piper admitted to incident, later resigned
Former Deputy James Piper was charged Wednesday with planting of a hoax bomb, which is a second-degree felony.
The bomb scare caused a partial evacuation Tuesday at the Sheriff's Office Administration building. The deputy sent the toy bomb to a lieutenant as a joke.
The bomb squad was called in and eventually determined the item was a toy.
After hearing what happened, Piper came forward and admitted to the prank. He immediately resigned.
Officials said a box was sent through inner-office mail with a note inside that read: BOOM!
Underneath the note was a toy bomb that looked like a stick of dynamite with a lime green monitor and black wires with bright colors on the end of them.
Investigators said when Lt. Joseph Gerretz opened the box, he took it as a potential threat.
Gerretz said when he saw the package insulated with plastic he erred on the side of caution.
Piper, 59, worked for the sheriff's office since 1982.