Second Arrest Made in Bomb Threat

A second arrest has been made in a November 15 bomb threat that temporarily shut down the Toombs County Courthouse. Charity Ann Miles, 26, of Vidalia, has been charged with Terroristic Threats and Acts in connection with the case. Miles was arrested by investigators with the Toombs County Sheriff’s Office on December 10 and is being held in the Toombs County Jail awaiting her first court appearance. Previously, investigators arrested Rodney Steven Weeks, 44, on charges of Terroristic Threats and Acts in the courthouse incident. Information gained during the investigation determined that Miles requested Weeks to call in a bomb threat in hopes that Miles would not have to appear in court that day, Captain Jordan Kight with the Toombs County Sheriff’s Office said in a press release issued last week.

Kight said, on November 15 at approximately 10:06 a.m., Toombs County 911 Dispatch received a call from the Toombs County Magistrate’s Office stating that a caller with a restricted phone

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number reported a bomb in the Toombs County Courthouse.

The Toombs County Sheriff’s Office, which is in charge of courthouse security, responded to evacuate all staff and citizens to a safe location. After securing the courthouse, deputies conducted a search but did not discover a bomb. An all-clear was issued and the courthouse was reopened to employees and the public at 1 p.m. As part of the investigation, officers utilized the assistance and resources of the Middle Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office in helping to identify a suspect in the incident. As the case progressed, the Sheriff’s Office learned that the Lyons Police Department was probing a bomb threat called into a local convenience store in Lyons on November 24. In last week’s edition of The Advance, it was reported that Weeks was also charged in the convenience store case, but in actuality, Weeks is only considered a person of interest in that incident and no charges have been made so far in that case, said Lyons Police Chief Wesley Walker. Eventually, enough evidence was obtained to implicate a suspect, and Toombs County authorities obtained a warrant to arrest Weeks for Terroristic Threats and Acts in the courthouse incident. This is still an active investigation and the Toombs County Sheriff’s Office asks that anyone with information please contact law enforcement at 912-5266778. Callers may remain anonymous.