ST. JOHNS COUNTY, Fla. — The St. Johns County Sheriff’s Office has shared additional information on what led to the evacuation of an Interstate 95 southbound rest area on Tuesday night.
Sources originally told Action News Jax that pipe bombs were found in a vehicle and a person was arrested. SJSO shared in its Wednesday afternoon update about the situation that a person was detained and a commercial-grade firework was found.
>>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<<
SJSO said the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) told SJSO and other law enforcement agencies on Tuesday that “a subject of interest was traveling on I-95 and may have explosive devices in his vehicle.”
“The investigation revealed no evidence of a crime or threat to the community; no arrest was made, and no illegal devices were discovered,” SJSO said in a Facebook post.
A person in another state told ATF that they had talked with the subject and “observed suspicious devices inside the vehicle,” the post said.
Deputies found the car that the subject was driving at the rest stop near mile marker 303 and detained them.
[DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks]
SJSO’s bomb technicians responded to investigate the car and “a commercial grade pyrotechnic (firework) was located inside the vehicle,” the post said.
The subject was questioned into the early morning hours and “was very cooperative,” SJSO said.
SJSO thanked the person who took the time to report the potential suspicious activity.
[SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.