UPDATE: According to police, Miller has undergone an evaluation and is now in custody.
ROCHESTER, Minn. – What began as officers responding to a man with a gun pointed toward his head turned into officers scouring the city after a man claimed to have planted bombs and harmful substances around Rochester.
Kyle Miller, 19, of Rochester, was taken to St. Mary’s hospital for evaluation before he will be taken into police custody after authorities say he claimed to have placed various items in schools and churches around Rochester.
Three locations – Oak Hills Wesleyan Church, Century High School and Calvary Evangelical Church – were all locations where Rochester police searched.
An envelope marked as “poison” left at Calvary Church did not contain a hazardous substance, police said late Monday morning. There was no powder located inside the envelope.
Police say at 3:10 Monday morning they were called to the Generose Parking Ramp at St. Mary’s Hospital and discovered what appeared to be a rifle pointed at Miller’s head. It was later determined it was a BB gun.
Police say that is when Miller told them about placing various items around the city.
Bomb dogs and a Hazmat team were called in. A white powder was found inside an envelope at Calvary Church.
Almost every Rochester PD officer on-duty spent the morning responding to the indicated locations.
Metal containers with what appeared to be Arabic writing on them were found but the substance wasn’t dangerous, police say.
