In what may have been a mistake on the part of a Norwalk bus driver, a man who was thought to be holding a grenade was forced to strip naked amid a standoff with authorities Monday night.
The bizarre standoff began to unfold at 7:30 p.m. when reports came in that a man on a bus had a grenade in his hand in the 12650 block of Imperial Highway.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department evacuated the other passenger off the bus, and the man was instructed to lie face down on the ground. Initial reports said the man said he had a grenade, but deputies later said it was a claim made by the bus driver.
The device in question was placed on the ground next to him as officers shut down the area, still unsure if he was armed.
Amid the standoff, the man was ordered to strip naked to ensure that he wasn't armed.
Once he backed away from the device and lay face down on the ground once more, deputies moved in and detained the man at 8:30 p.m.
He was questioned, but released without incident, deputies later said.
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Bomb-sniffing dogs did not find any evidence of explosives.
