A bomb squad found no explosive in a backpack left by a man who called in a bomb threat at the El Monte Police Department. Conan Nolan reports for the NBC4 News at Noon on Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2015.
A bomb squad gave the all-clear after investigating a backpack that was left at the door of the El Monte Police Department Tuesday morning by a man who claimed there was a bomb in it, police said.
The man allegedly called in the threat about 6:40 a.m. outside the lobby of the station at 11333 Valley Blvd., El Monte police said. When officers confronted him, he dropped the backpack on the ground and was detained. Police originally said he had been arrested.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department was called in to assist, and the station and nearby City Hall were evacuated.
About an hour later, police said no explosives had been found.
Police did not immediately identify the man detained. They said he was in his 50s and was cooperating with investigators.
"We're a little concerned for him right now. Clearly it was a cold rainy night. His discussions with us have been cooperative and coherent, so we believe that he is able to communicate effectively," El Monte Police Capt. Chris Williams said. "We're not sure about his exact motivation or rationale, but there is no explosive device here at the facility, there was no explosive device in his possession."
The incident was reported to Los Angeles's counterterrorism agency, the Joint Regional Intelligence Center.
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Conan Nolan contributed to this report.
