Bomb threat in Beijing a false alarm

A supermarket in Beijing resumed business after it received a false bomb threat on Thursday, police said.

The Carrefour supermarket, within the Longde Plaza shopping mall in the northern Changping district, received an e-mail at 9 am, in which the sender demanded 50,000 yuan ($8,145) and claimed he or she planted bombs in the store.

After receiving a report from the supermarket, police evacuated employees and customers in the shopping mall, according to a statement posted on the Beijing Public Security Bureau's micro blog.

After a search, police did not find any bombs and the business of the shopping mall returned to normal, it said.

Police did not disclose the identity of the e-mail sender or the details of the e-mail, only saying further investigation was underway.

A saleswoman of a shop near the supermarket on the first floor of the mall said she rushed outside at 9:30 am after security guards ordered people to leave the building. At 4 pm, she returned to the shopping mall and resumed the operation of her shop.