SECAUCUS — The Secaucus Town Council meeting was evacuated Tuesday evening for a bomb scare after a resident apparently left behind an unattended package. The council meeting was near closing during the citizens’ remarks portion when Secaucus police officers asked everyone in the room to evacuate the building.
Apparently, a resident had abruptly left the meeting and left something behind. Chief Dennis Corcoran said that it had appeared that someone who was a little disturbed had come to the council meeting and his behavior in leaving the council meeting abruptly had caused alarm.
Several residents said that they saw him leave and enter the room a few times and that at one point he left behind a two packages. A fire official noticed the behavior and called the police. The police had the building evacuated and called the Hudson County Sheriff’s K-9 unit.
Wilbert Negron from the K-9 unit said that the dog sniffed the area and nothing suspicious was found.
The man was held in Secaucus due to a warrant for his arrest from Bayonne, officials said. He was also going to undergo a psychological examination, officials said.
The meeting did not resume after the building was safe to reenter. Mayor Michael Gonnelli said that the gentleman in question recently moved to town and has been emailing him asking for help because he has no food. Gonnelli said that the
municipality helped him with his disability papers and has been delivering food to his home. He recently began receiving meals through donations to Meadowlands Hospital and via the Meals on Wheels program. The resident had emailed the mayor to tell him he was going to attend the council meeting.
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