Posted on 01/13/2004 4:54:27 AM PST by Born Conservative
MIFFLIN TWP. — A McAdoo man was arrested Sunday for allegedly spraying a car at a truck stop here with a mysterious liquid and triggering a chemical contamination scare.
The bizarre incident prompted police, firefighters and county emergency management officials to cordon off the Kreiser Truck Stop along Route 339.
Charles J. Lucarelli, 58, of 45 Blaine St., had a spray system rigged in the trunk of his Oldsmobile that he used to disperse an "unknown substance," said Walter Brasch, public information officer for Columbia County Emergency Management Agency.
Members of Bloomsburg's hazardous material unit were trying to identify the material Sunday night, Brasch said.
The FBI has been notified in case the spraying was a terrorist act.
"We don't know until we talk to him further," Brasch said. "We're trying to identify the substance and the effects of it."
He added that Lucarelli was not cooperating with police.
Police catch suspect at scene
About 3 p.m., Lucarelli drove through the Citgo station outside the truck stop and sprayed the car of Michael and Trudy Bennett of Bloomsburg and their two children, Zeke and Brittany, both 4, Brasch said.
The bottom of the driver's door on Bennett's maroon car had been doused with a liquid.
Bennett said at the scene that he wasn't allowed to talk about the incident, but later said the liquid came from a hole in the passenger side of Lucarelli's car.
Lucarelli then drove to nearby Tuggy's Restaurant, and Bennett called 911. Lucarelli eventually returned to the truck stop, where he was stopped and taken into custody by South Centre Township officer Shawn Young, Brasch said.
Firefighters use protective suits
Lucarelli's older sedan sat between the truck stop building and the first gasoline pump with the driver's door open.
Firefighters in yellow protective suits, and one without, looked inside the car and pried the trunk open with an ax and pry bar.
Firefighters removed several items from the trunk, including a black duffel bag, a white plastic utility tote and other items.
'Hot zone' no danger to public
Brasch said the area around the truck stop was considered a "hot zone" because the substance Lucarelli used has not been identified.
He said there appears to be no danger to the public, but that depends on what the substance turns out to be.
No one at the scene reported feeling ill, Brasch said.
South Centre Township police Chief Bill Richendrfer said anyone who came in direct contact with the liquid will be checked by a doctor as a precaution, but there's no concern that the material was airborne.
The Bennett family, along with Young and Lucarelli, were taken to Bloomsburg Hospital for decontamination washing and blood tests, police said.
The FBI is helping to get the liquid tested, and results may take a day or so, Richendrfer said.
When Larry Lahiff, the county's EMA operations officer, arrived about 4:45 p.m. he asked nearly everyone, including police and some fire personnel, to cross to the other side of Route 339 as a precaution. A portion of the highway in front of the truck stop was closed for a short time.
When police first arrived, they were concerned about wind direction and the possibility of the substance blowing around to contaminate a wider area.
Among others responding were Mifflinville Fire Co., Scott Township police and Berwick Ambulance.
A certified hazardous materials team from nearby Minuteman Towing was standing by to assist, Brasch added.
Felony charges
Lucarelli was arraigned Sunday night on felony charges of making terroristic threats and causing or risking a catastrophe. He also faces a misdemeanor charge of recklessly endangering another person and a summary charge of criminal mischief, police said.
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