Briefly in the news

Deepa Bharath

What turned out to be an empty pinata resting beneath bushes off

Newport Boulevard in Costa Mesa led police officials to call in the

Orange County Sheriff’s Department bomb squad Tuesday afternoon.

About 3:15 p.m., officials responded to a call from Bodycentre Spa

that reported that somebody had spotted a “suspicious object” under the

bushes near the business, at East 17th Street and Newport Boulevard, said

Costa Mesa Police Lt. Les Gogerty.

Several police units rushed to the area. The bomb squad inspected the

object, further identified as an empty pinata, Gogerty said.

He said Bodycentre employees were disturbed by the object.

“They’ve had some incidents near their stores in the past, about a

couple of years ago,” Gogerty said. “But this one turned out to be

nothing.”

Though traffic was briefly disrupted by the hoopla, there were no

major road closures, he said. A few parking lots were closed, however, to

help police units and the bomb squad operate.