Man due in court for alleged threats

A Costa Mesa man is scheduled to appear in court today after police said he walked into a Newport Beach bank and threatened to blow it up.

Ronnie Richard Spain, 55, a transient, walked into the Bank of America, 1016 Irvine Ave., Monday just after noon, said Sgt. Evan Sailor. Spain said something about having a bomb and blowing up the place, then threw a backpack on the ground and walked out, police said.

While everyone evacuated, one quick-thinking employee followed the man up the street, where police found him within minutes, Sailor said.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Department Bomb Squad sent a robot inside to clear Spain’s backpack, police said. The bag had some clothes, papers and other personal items in it but nothing that resembled an explosive, officials said. The area was shut down for about two hours during the ordeal, Sailor said.

Spain, an unemployed machinist, was arrested on suspicion of terrorist threats and is being held in Orange County Jail in lieu of $50,000 bail. Police said he also has an arrest warrant in Florida that they are looking into.

— Joseph Serna