'Hoax devices' found at two Las Cruces buildings
(Photo: Jett Loe / Sun-News)
LAS CRUCES – Two suspicious packages found Wednesday outside the Las Cruces District Court and the building that formerly housed the Doña Ana County Magistrate Court turned out to be hoax devices fabricated to resemble bombs, an official said.
Kelly Jameson, spokeswoman for the Doña Ana County Sheriff’s Office, said the sheriff’s bomb squad investigated the two packages and determined they did not pose a threat.
“They were calling them a hoax device — something built to look like a bomb, but wasn’t actually a bomb,” Jameson said.
Around 9 a.m., a package was found outside the Las Cruces District Court, 201 W. Picacho Ave., on the side of the building that faces Alameda Avenue, Jameson said.
The package was found by a security guard and a portion of the courthouse near Alameda Avenue was evacuated as a precaution while the bomb squad investigated the package. Nearby businesses were placed on modified lockdown.
“This building itself was never closed off to the public, but the area of the building near where it was found was evacuated,” she said.
Chief District Judge Fernando R. Macias said he was notified shortly after the package was found. The judge said he met with sheriff’s Capt. Craig Buckingham, who oversees security at the courthouse, and the court’s administration. They made the decision to evacuate only a portion of the building.
“There isn’t a major concern,” Macias said shortly before 11 a.m. Wednesday.
Staff from the evacuated area were told to go to other areas in the courthouse. Some of them were seen waiting in and out of courtrooms.
Jameson said the bomb squad cleared the courthouse before noon, and after 1 p.m., she said the evacuated area had “been restored to its full capacity.”
Las Cruces police spokesman Dan Trujillo said a similar suspicious package was reported at the old Magistrate Court building, 151 N. Church St., which currently houses city offices.
“The call came in sometime after the call at district court,” Trujillo said.
The building, which is connected to the Las Cruces Municipal Court, was evacuated while the package was investigated by the bomb squad. Municipal Court,135 E. Griggs Ave., was not evacuated. Traffic on Church Street was diverted to Griggs Avenue while authorities investigated the incident.
Trujillo said the area was cleared within an hour and a half.
Jameson said the sheriff’s bomb squad is working to determine whether the packages are related.
No arrest have been made.
The Las Cruces District Court has been evacuated several times since the Aug. 2, 2015, explosions at Calvary Baptist Church and Holy Cross Catholic Church.
“It’s unfortunate that these threats are a common occurrence,” Macias said, before adding, “I have never been concerned about my safety at any point during my tenure as a district judge.”
Carlos Andres López can be reached 575-541-5453 or carlopez@lcsun-news.com. Follow him on Twitter @carlopez_los.
No comments