Auburndale Man Accused Of Igniting Flares In Polk County Mall

LAKE WALES, FL - A 31-year-old Auburndale man has been accused of igniting marine flares in a corridor of the Eagle Ridge Mall in Lake Wales, resulting in its evacuation on Jan. 21, Lakes Wales police said. The suspect was identified as Patrick Joseph Collins, who was arrested near his home in Auburndale on Friday evening. He attempted to flee on a motorcycle and rammed a Polk County sheriff's patrol car. He was then apprehended on foot.

Collins faces charges of resisting an officer without violence, attempted arson and manufacturing and possessing a hoax bomb. Police said Collins was tracked down using forensic evidence found on items left inside the mall. The flares caused damage to ceiling tiles.

The flares were placed inside a PVC pipe and then wrapped in electrical tape, police said. Police found two marine flares and black electrical tape in a search of his home and a saddlebag on his motorcycle, according to a press release.

Collins told police he had been laid off two weeks ago from his job working on cellphone towers.

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