Police in New York City were locked in a standoff with a man who they believe tossed a hoax bomb into a vehicle driven by two officers.
The officers said the man tossed an electronic device into the NYPD vehicle Wednesday night and drove away in a Chrysler Aspen, which they spotted hours later near Columbus Circle.
The man, who was wearing a red helmet and sunglasses, remained for nearly six hours inside his vehicle Thursday morning but was not believed to be a threat to the public.
The suspect identified by police as 52-year-old Hector Meneses, of Queens, was apprehended at 8 a.m.
Hostage negotiators, SWAT teams, K-9 units and bomb squads responded to the standoff, which shut down the area to pedestrians and cars.
Police sent a robot to get a closer look at the man, who is believed to be alone in the SUV.
All clear by the bomb squad after a suspicious object was thrown at a police car. @NYPDMTN https://t.co/yOsg14RTl7— J. Peter Donald (@J. Peter Donald) 1469076202.0
Investigators said he threw a blinking and ticking device onto the dashboard of a police van parked near Times Square, and the officers drove away from the crowded area, placed the suspicious item on a sidewalk, backed pedestrians away and called a bomb squad. The device turned out to be a candle and some electrical components wrapped in white cloth.
Watch this report posted online by WPIX-TV:
Watch this report posted online by CNN below:
Just In: Hours-long standoff at Columbus Circle in NYC ends. Police say suspect threw fake bomb into police van https://t.co/8Cj3iDIjDU
— New Day (@NewDay) July 21, 2016
