BROOKLYN, NY— Federal agents executing a search warrant uncovered a device consistent with a pipe bomb inside a Gravesend apartment, prompting an evacuation and a large emergency response, police sources said.
Members of Homeland Security Investigations’ JFK Task Force entered an apartment at 2525 West 2nd St. as part of a long-term investigation into ghost guns when they found a suspicious package late Wednesday morning.
Officers cleared the building as a precaution.
The NYPD Bomb Squad responded and used X-ray equipment to examine the device. Investigators determined the cylindrical object was consistent with a pipe bomb and believed it was explosive in nature, according to police sources.
Authorities planned to transport the device to Rodman’s Neck in the Bronx, where the NYPD operates its Tactical Training Center, for further examination and testing.
Police took one person into custody. Charges remained pending.
By Wednesday afternoon, investigators carried multiple evidence bags out of the building.
Residents described a heavy law enforcement presence as officers secured the area.
“There were so many police cars, Homeland Security people there. It was kind of unnerving for everybody,” David Holstein, who lives nearby, told CBS News. “It was very shocking. I’ve been here for many years and it was the first time anything like that ever happened. I didn’t know if it was terrorism or was it something else. I really didn’t know what to think.”
Authorities said the investigation had not revealed any connection to an active terror plot or a broader threat.