A package left on a B.C. Transit bus near Victoria's legislature, forcing the evacuation of the area, turned out to be a gift innocently left behind.
The owner of the box, told CHEK news that he forgot the gift on the bus. The University of Victoria student said he was on his way to Vancouver when he realized the suspicious package on the news was his.
Victoria police Const. Mike Russell said the box was "wrapped in a way that caused us some concern."
Police cordoned off a city block near the legislature at about 4: 45 p.m. Monday after the package - a 12-pack beverage container wrapped in paper towels and electrical tape - was found on the lower floor of a double-decker bus.
The Victoria police department's bomb technician and bomb-sniffing dog examined the box initially and determined it warranted further examination.
The RCMP Explosive Disposal Unit arrived from Vancouver at about 11 p.m. Monday. Members X-rayed the package and determined it was safe. It was then taken to the Victoria police department and opened.
The package contained a pair of sunglasses and a T-shirt featuring musician Dan Mangan and a note saying something to the effect of: "Hey, have fun at Rifflandia, I did last year, you will too," Russell said.
The Rifflandia music festival starts Thursday in several downtown venues.
Festival director Nick Blasko said the incident was bizarre.
"We're just happy this turned out to be an innocent situation," he said. "It sounds like all the right precautions were taken."
Given Tuesday's anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in the United States and the bus's location by the legislature, police had to "take a cautious approach," Russell said.
At the peak of the investigation, about a dozen officers were involved.
The No. 61 bus was at the corner of Superior and Government streets when the package was discovered by the driver during a routine inspection at the end of his run.
