DETROIT — Authorities locked down Detroit city hall and an adjacent county building Monday while police searched for a man who was allowed through a security checkpoint before guards realized that he might have a gun.
Police Chief James Craig said there was no “active shooter” or any specific threat, but that an image of what could be a gun was spotted after a bag passed through a security machine.
“It wasn’t until they realized he might have a handgun that the suspect was already past the security checkpoint, got onto an elevator,” Craig told reporters.
A private company handles security at the checkpoint, and Craig said there might have been a 45 minute delay before police were told about the security breach.
Police were investigating, as well as looking for a white man in a dark suit who may have been wearing a yellow shirt. Craig said they had a grainy image of him from security footage and he didn’t know why the man may have brought a gun into the building, which is a gun-free zone.
Mayor Mike Duggan wasn’t at city hall, formally known as Coleman A. Young Municipal Center, but Craig said judges, City Council members and others were safely removed. City offices in the building were ordered closed throughout the day Monday, with normal operations expected to resume Tuesday, according to Duggan’s office.
Andrew Sokoly, a member of Councilman Scott Benson’s staff, told the Detroit Free Press he was in his office with a few other staffers a little before 9:30 a.m. when an announcement over the public address system said to stay inside and lock the door.
About an hour and 15 minutes after the lockdown was announced, Sokoly said there was loud knock on the door by a SWAT team member with a long rifle and tactical gear. He and other staffers were escorted out the building on a freight elevator.
“I felt pretty secure,” Sokoly said.
City hall and a county building that houses courtrooms and other public offices are connected with a common lobby. Melissa Thomas, 41, of Westland, was evacuated along with her grandson.
“They had us locked in office areas and told us to stay there until further instructions,” Thomas told The Detroit News.
