Three suspicious packages forced one of New York City’s busiest transit hubs to shut down Friday morning, but authorities later discovered the packages were harmless.
The Fulton Street subway complex was shut down after two empty rice cookers were found, and another rice cooker was later discovered at at West 16th Street and 7th Avenue. Authorities do not yet know if the packages are related, according to NYPD Chief of Transit Edward Delatorre. (RELATED: Over 90,000 Sign Petition To Rename Street Outside Trump Tower After Obama)
UPDATE: @NYPDTransit, @NYPDDCT, and @MTA provide an update on the earlier incidents at Fulton St and 16th St & 7th Ave. pic.twitter.com/z6vf9YGws2
— NYPD NEWS (@NYPDnews) August 16, 2019
A man was seen dropping two of the packages at the subway station Friday morning. Authorities are currently trying to get in touch with the man, and aren’t sure if his actions were deliberate or not. (RELATED: Man Who Planned To Blow Up New York City Subway Stations Could Be Released Soon)
“I don’t know what the deliberate act is,” NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller said at a press conference. “Whether it was to create fear and alarm on the part of the public, or whether he was discarding items he was no longer interested in.”
Miller also praised local authorities for taking swift action to investigate the situation.
“I think what you see here is a system that works,” Miller said.