Police: Man told friend to call in bomb threat to Crystal Lake car dealership 'as a joke'

A Wisconsin man has been charged after he instructed a friend to call in a bomb threat to his workplace, Prairie Grove Police Chief Tony Colatorti said.

Brian K. Platou, 45, of Silver Lake, Wisconsin, faces disorderly conduct charges in connection with making a false bomb threat.

Police responded about 4:10 p.m. Monday to the Crystal Lake Chrysler Jeep Dodge Ram car dealership on Route 31 after a reported bomb threat.

The building shut down while an investigation took place, which included a search by Kane County’s bomb-sniffing dog, Colatorti said.

Platou works at the dealership and had told a friend to call in the threat “as a joke,” Colatorti said.

The friend followed through, and he said while on the phone that Platou had told him to call, Colatorti said.

Officers from Prairie Grove and Crystal Lake police departments and the McHenry County Sheriff’s Office investigated the incident.

Colatorti would not comment on whether additional charges are pending for Platou or the person who actually made the call, but he said the investigation is ongoing.

Platou was charged with a Class 3 felony and bonded out of the McHenry County Jail on Tuesday morning, according to online jail records. He is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday.