Update: Man arrested in bizarre Boston marketing ploy
Ron Brynaert
Published:
Wednesday January 31, 2007
 Update from AP: "Peter Berdovsky, 27, of Arlington, was arrested on one felony charge of placing a hoax device and one charge of disorderly conduct, state Attorney General Martha Coakley said later Wednesday. He had been hired to place the devices, she said."
Parts of Boston were shut down today after a number of "suspicious" packages were found. The first device found on a highway forced authorities to shut off traffic, and detonate the package which witnesses on various news reports said contained loose wires.
At least four more suspicious packages were found in the Boston metropolitan area, and the Charles River was shut down by the Coast Guard as authorities took precautions. Later, Fox would report that sources said that there may be as many as ten such "suspicious devices."
While some local Boston stations quickly determined that at least the last four devices were some sort of "hoax," the major cable news channels, like CNN and Fox News Channel, weren't so quick to call it harmless.
But at around 3:30 PM, reports trickled in that the governor was also calling it a hoax.
"It's a hoax -- and it's not funny," said Gov. Deval Patrick.
"Anytime you get a report of a suspicious device, it is always a concern," U.S. Coast Guard Capt. Scott Carr said. "We went ahead and shut down the waterways so we could clear the area and keep everybody safe."
Boston's ABC affiliate reported on the detonated device, "Officials said it contained an electronic circuit board with some components that were 'consistent with an improvised explosive device,' but they said it had no explosives. They determined that the device was not dangerous, but destroyed it as a precaution."
 Fox News showed a shot of a device which resembled Hasbro's toy LITE-BRITE set, with colored light bulbs patterned to show an outer space character from the Adult Swim cartoon Aqua Teen Hunger Force called a "Mooninite."
"Aqua Teen Hunger Force has shut down a city," Fox News anchor Shepard Smith told viewers.
Fox News reports, "According to the Cartoon Network, the show is an animated comedy about three detectives in the shape of human-sized food products that live together in a rental house in New Jersey. Master Shake is the self-appointed team leader, while the 'reasonable' Frylock is a box of french-fried potatoes, and the Meatwad character is a round mound of meat. Together, they solve the mysteries of New Jersey, usually from the luxury of their neighbor's above-ground swimming pool. When faced with danger, they 'run like hell,' according to the Cartoon Network."
A feature animated film version of the hipster cartoon for adults is scheduled to hit theaters on March 23rd.
Excerpts from Associated Press report:
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Five suspicious packages planted near bridges and other spots around Boston forced the shutdown of major roads, a bridge and a stretch of the Charles River on Wednesday before authorities concluded the objects were not bombs.
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Police said four calls, all around 1 p.m., reported suspicious devices at the Boston University Bridge and the Longfellow Bridge, which both span the Charles River, at a Boston street corner and at the Tufts-New England Medical Center.
The package near the Boston University bridge was found attached to a structure beneath the span, where it crosses the Massachusetts Turnpike, authorities said.
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The liberal blog, News Hounds, which monitors Fox News Channel "so you don't have to," noted that "one of the devices was a picture of a man flipping someone off and another was a figure that depicted a picture of what is called an Aqua Teen Mooninite."
"What should have been a short segment had Studio B spending the whole hour on what Smith called a possible stoner hoax," the blog post continued. "With all the hearings going on in Washington and the war in Iraq it's nice to know that Studio B has an entire hour to spend on a supposed hoax."
Fox headline: 'Not Funny!
 The "terror scare" which shut down traffic for hours today throughout a major US metropolitan city turned out to be a promotional stunt gone awry.
Later in the day, Turner Broadcasting's Cartoon Network released a statement admitting that the "suspicious packages" were part of an "outdoor marketing campaign in 10 cities in support of Adult Swim's animated television show Aqua Teen Hunger Force."
"They have been in place for two to three weeks in Boston, New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Atlanta, Seattle, Portland, Austin, San Francisco, and Philadelphia. Parent company Turner Broadcasting is in contact with local and federal law enforcement on the exact locations of the billboards," the statement continued. "We regret that they were mistakenly thought to pose any danger."
A front page banner at FoxNews.com entitled "Not Funny!" linked to a story which contained quotes from an outraged former FBI official.
"No matter who did this, I think there's probably enough evidence I think the Boston Police Department, the bureau, state police — everybody will probably get together … I wouldn't be surprised to see someone charged in this. This is an extremely serious situation," former FBI Director Bill Gavin told Fox News. "Whoever did this — whether it be kids or adults — if they think it's funny, I think they'll soon learn it's not that much of a humorous situation."
Fox's Shepard Smith wondered how much money was lost because of the marketing campaign, and if Turner Broadcasting would face future fines.
"Peter Berdovsky, 29, of Arlington, was arrested on one felony charge of placing a hoax device and one charge of disorderly conduct, state Attorney General Martha Coakley said later Wednesday," Associated Press reports. "He had been hired to place the devices, she said."
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