A cardboard box marked with the words "Fuck DPD" and placed on a BMW sport-utility vehicle was the cause of the lockout at Eagleton Elementary School this morning, according to police and school officials.
A bomb squad was called, the owner of the vehicle is being investigated for a felony charge and otherwise things turned out fine.
Here's how it all happened.
This morning, school officials noticed the aforementioned box sitting on the BMW across the street from Eagleton.
The message on the box was large enough that Jones could see it from a half-block away, he said. At 8:07 a.m., police received a call about a "suspicious-looking box, with an anti-police message on it," according to Doug Schepman, police spokesman.
A bomb squad with heavy protective gear was called to the scene while the elementary school locked its doors and shifted children away from the side of the building facing the vehicle, Jones said.
The box also was sitting next to "items" that "made it suspicious," according to Schepman, who didn't go into further detail.
During the investigation, a man approached on foot and said he owned the vehicle; he was informed that he would need to have a discussion with the police, Jones said.
The owner of the vehicle apparently had received a ticket from Denver police, according to Will Jones, a spokesman for Denver Public Schools, which had made him angry.
Later, the man was taken into custody by police. He was being held for investigation of a felony count of possession of a hoax device, with the Denver District Attorney's Office to make the final determination.
No explosives or safety threats were found and the scene was cleared after about 90 minutes. The suspect has not yet been identified, and the investigation is continuing.
"They treated it as they should have and as they normally do," Jones said.
It's a reminder, Schepman said, to "report any suspicious or illegal activity to police so that we can take the appropriate steps to help ensure public safety and investigate the situation."
