Suspicious packages found near state Capitol
A loud boom echoed from a grassy area in front of the state Capitol just after noon today as California Highway Patrol officers apparently blew up a suspicious package found nearby.
Two packages were found on a statue near the north end of the Capitol and were x-rayed by a hazardous materials team, according to Jarrod Lassila, a California Highway Patrol spokesman.
One of the packages, a paper bag, was found to contain clothes. The other had a piece of metal sticking out of it, so officers moved it to a grassy area and conducted what Lassila said was a "controlled disruption."
Lassila said the bag did not contain explosives or hazardous materials. He said investigators are not releasing details on the disruption method they used or on the contents of the second package.
Some areas of the Capitol were evacuated during the operation.
-- Patrick McGreevy in Sacramento
