Police investigate bomb threats against 3 Walmart stores in Metro Detroit

Police are investigating a series of bomb threats made Monday against at least three Walmart stores in Metro Detroit.

The threats were made against a store on Adams Road in Rochester Hills and a store on Highland Road in White Lake Township in Oakland County as well as another in Canton Township in Wayne County, the Oakland County Sheriff's Office said.

Investigators said the threats may be part of a larger effort to disrupt the company's business.

"We’ve seen similar things happen in different parts of the country," Sheriff Michael Bouchardsaid in a statement. "In the other threats, they were not credible. But out of an abundance of caution,explosive-detection dogs were sent to check the stores. We will be working with otherauthorities locally and nationally to investigate."

According to authorities, the two Oakland County stores received the threats via phone calls made at about 11 a.m. The caller, a male, threatened to blow up each of the stores unless he was paid a ransom.

Officials immediately evacuated the stores and police searched them with bomb-detecting dogs. No explosives were found at either location and they are expected to open later Monday.

The Oakland County Sheriff's Office said a similar threat was also phoned into a Walmart store in Canton.

cramirez@detroitnews.com

Twitter: @CharlesERamirez