By Vanessa Overholser - Staff Writer
Police and fire crews spent four hours Saturday night trying to determine if a suspicious package wedged in a mailbox outside the Morehead Post Office was dangerous.
The Kentucky State Police’s bomb squad used a robot device to investigate the item, which turned out to be tissues wrapped in foil.
A person of interest, whose name was not released, was interviewed by Morehead police based on evidence found at the scene. The Morehead resident allegedly responsible is currently under mental evaluation, police said.
“Based on evidence we were able to obtain a mental health warrant and we picked him up without incident,” said Morehead Police Chief Mike Adams.
“At about 8:11 p.m. we received a citizen’s complaint that a suspicious package was lodged in one of the outside mailboxes of the Morehead Post Office,” Adams said.
The mailbox was located in the rear entrance of the post office parking lot. Police blocked off all entrances leading to the post office, including West First Street and the bypass.
Whenever there is a life-threatening incident like this reported, Adams said there is a procedure police follow to secure the scene.
“We contacted the postal inspector and the FBI was notified,” Adams said. “The use of the KSP Bomb Squad was recommended as procedure to investigate the package. They responded and used their robot to investigate the package. They destroyed the package and removed it from the box.”
The suspicious package was stuffed with toilet paper and wrapped in foil. Officers estimated it was about 5 inches wide and 8 inches long, not small enough to fit inside the mailbox. There was evidence in the mailbox that indicated the person responsible for the incident.
“The Morehead Fire Department, MSU Police, and the KSP assisted with keeping the road block and clearing the scene,” Adams said. “We started the investigation at 8:11 p.m. and we left 2:11 a.m. The roads were opened about 20 minutes before that.”
Postal Inspector Scott Keller said he did not have any additional information. He is currently working with the MPD.
