EVANSTON, Ill. – A 44-year-old woman described as a person of interest was taken into custody in connection with a small bomb explosion in the women’s bathroom at a Target store in Evanston, Illinois, police said Thursday.
Despite early speculation the incident was possibly connected to Target’s recent change to its bathroom policy allowing customers “to use the restroom or fitting room facility that corresponds with their gender identity,” police dismissed that notion Thursday.
“The detectives are not currently looking for any known additional suspects and as this point there is no indication that the incident is related to any policies that the Target store has in place,” police said in a news release issued Thursday.
The explosion occurred Wednesday shortly after 4 p.m. at the store located in the 2200 block of Howard Street, according to police.
No one was inside the bathroom when the small explosion happened, Commander Joe Dugan said. It caused minor damage and no one was injured.
Early indications are that a plastic bottle was used but no projectiles like nails or tacks were inside it.
Investigators are gathering evidence, including examining store security camera video.
KTLA’s Olsen Ebright contributed to this story.
