Bellingham thrift store staff makes explosive discovery while checking the donation bin

Employees at the Bellingham Value Village thrift shop received a shocking surprise Wednesday morning when they checked the donation drop box. Instead of the usual worn clothes, old CDs and worn lamps they discovered firearms, ammunition, flares and what appeared to be an explosive device.

The explosive device looked like a “flashbang, or noise flash distraction device (NFDD),” according to a social media post by the Bellingham Police Department.

Employees called police, who determined that the firearms were old movie prop revolvers and the “flashbang” was a pneumatic prop. However, the various calibers of ammunition were real, as well as the 18 flares donated, BPD spokesperson Megan Peters told The Bellingham Herald.

Although the weapons were determined to be props they will also be destroyed by law enforcement, as Value Village does not accept weapons of any kind, even fake or toy ones, in the donation bin.

While it is illegal to own a real flashbang/NFDD, there is no law against owning a fake one, according to Peters.

Those looking to dispose of weapons and ammunition can surrender them to BPD, and anyone who discovers an explosive device of any kind should contact police immediately.