Hearing for South Hills Village Bomb Scare Suspect Ends with Tears

The elderly man accused of causing the evacuation of South Hills Village Mall last month was in tears apologizing to the judge and thanking Bethel Park police for treating him well at the end of his preliminary hearing on Monday.

District Judge Robert Wyda continued the hearing for Frank Zahler until July 1 so that behavioral health specialists could help Zahler discover the underlying cause of why he made the "callous and stupid" remarks on April 21, just days after the Boston Marathon tragedy.

"What you said was clearly wrong," Wyda told Zahler. "We need to get things mentally and emotionally under control.

"You need to continue to work with these people (health specialists) to help you help yourself."

Zahler was handcuffed in the middle of the hearing when he refused to take a recess and step out in the hallway to speak to his attorney. Zahler later apologized for "causing a racket."

According to witness Ben Munnell, 22, of Castle Shannon Borough, Zahler approached him and his brother at Barnes & Noble Booksellers last month as they were waiting to see a movie at the theater across the parking lot from there.

Munnell, a Castle Shannon volunteer firefighter and a Keystone Oaks High School graduate, said that he walked away from Zahler to look at the magazines and to try to get away from him. He said that his older brother continued to talk to him because he was trying to be nice to Zahler, who appeared to be lonely.

At around 6:30 p.m., Zahler allegedly told Munnell's brother that he had "bomb materials" in his briefcase "that were just like the stuff used in the Boston Marathon bombing."

Munnell's brother told the store manager, who called police. Munnell also called the police.

"That's something you shouldn't take lightly," Munnell testified. "It seemed like it could be a recipe for disaster."

Bethel Park police found Zahler sitting at a booth in the nearby Red Robin restaurant drinking coffee and writing on a napkin. He had been removed from the mall's food court by security for erratic behavior.

Zahler is charged with risking a catastrophe, terroristic threats and threatening to use a weapon of mass destruction. He spent three weeks in jail. Wyda said that the charges might be reduced at his next hearing in July.

This article originally appeared on the UpperSt.Clair Patch.

Join Patch for more community news or join us on Facebook and Twitter.