Staten Island: Photos Of People Roaming With ‘Assault Rifles’ Triggered Terror Lockdown

Staten Island’s Coast Guard station was locked down after photos emerged of people carrying what looked like assault rifles.

After the NYPD received photos of people holding what looked like automatic assault rifles the Staten Island’s Coast Guard was put on terror alert. The people in the photos looked as if they were casually handling the dangerous weapons in a parking lot near the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge, reported the Daily Mail. The photos were taken by a retired police photographer, which prompted the police to issue an alert for two vehicles with New Jersey license plates.

The photos appeared to be disturbing as they showed a smiling man and woman holding semi-automatic rifles and pointing them in the windows of cars, stated New York Police Department Deputy Commissioner John Miller. The images seemed even scarier due to the shocking incident at Chattanooga, which happened earlier this week.

As part of the security routine, police cars were deployed near the bridge, which connects Staten Island and Brooklyn as well as on roadways leading from Staten Island to New Jersey on Friday afternoon to quickly zero-in on the cars that could have carried the assault rifles. As part of the hunt, officers funnelled traffic into one lane, which led to serpentine queues during the evening return journey for many office-goers, reported SiLive.com.

While the police were hunting for the cars, the images were being analysed by firearms experts. By the time the police accosted the vehicles, experts indicated the weapons were merely paintball guns. NYPD officers and FBI agents questioned the owner of one of the cars, who concurred that he was planning to go to shoot the paintball guns with friends on Friday, stated Deputy Commissioner Miller.

State Island is already under heavy security after four Marines were shot dead Thursday in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Police patrols have already been enhanced, and police officers and their vehicles can be seen at bridges and tunnels in the city. Fortunately, access to the nearby Coast Guard station returned to normal after police confirmed the guns were merely meant to shoot paintballs.

Speaking about the incident, Spokesperson Petty Officer Iannazzo Simmons said, “The station was placed on lockdown after police notified it of ‘an unconfirmed report of a threat.’ The lockdown was lifted and normal operations resumed, when police determined the threat was ‘no longer significant.'”

Staten Island residents are still under stress from the death of Eric Garner that happened last year. This incident simply piled on the anxiety.

[Image Credit | NYPD via The Daily Mail]