[Oremem/Idamem] Suspicious package found at rental car agency was a hoax

[Phillip Barker]

Police: Suspicious package found at rental car agency was a hoax
By TOM HAYS
The Associated Press

NEW YORK - A car rental agency near La Guardia Airport was evacuated 
today after employees discovered a loaded gun in a trunk and a 
suspicious device that turned out to be harmless, police said.

The device was a clock taped to two road flares with black tape, 
according to police spokesman Michael O'Looney. He said a bomb 
squad determined the clock could not have ignited the flares, 
and he described it as a hoax.

Police were looking for the person who rented the car on May 23.

The car had not been returned by the renter and instead was 
retrieved by the agency because it was overdue by several days, 
according to David Gilman, a spokesman for National Car Rental. 
He said records regarding the car and the person who last 
rented it had been turned over to police.

Rental agency workers summoned police to the scene about 10:45 
a.m. after discovering the gun and device. The car was parked 
on the second deck of a garage, and police blocked off the area.

The incident followed reports of suspicious packages Wednesday 
that led police to shut down three major subway lines in New York. 
The Brooklyn Bridge was also shut down temporarily after a caller
 told police he had been offered money to drive a car onto the 
span. None of the reports Wednesday proved a danger to the public.

Phil Barker
Curry County Computer Services
Gold Beach, Oregon 97444
541.247.3370 Desk
541.253.7550 Cellphone