Multiple downtown Atlanta streets have been blocked by police after a “suspicious package” was found near the Fulton County Courthouse and the Fulton County Government Center.
“A suspicious package has several streets around the Fulton County County Courthouse and Fulton County Government Center closed,” the Atlanta-Fulton County Emergency Management Agency (AFCEMA) said on Twitter.
AFCEMA, a joint agency and the primary emergency management agency for Fulton County and the city of Atlanta, said it was monitoring the situation.
Streets closed as police investigate the situation include Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Pryor Street NW.
“Avoid the area; major traffic backups,” the agency added.
Officials with the Atlanta Police Department told FOX 5 Atlanta that they arrived at the scene after receiving reports of a suspicious suitcase.
Officers with the police department, the Fulton County Marshal’s Office, and Fulton County deputies are currently at the scene, the news outlet reported.
Traffic is being diverted away from the area as an investigation is carried out.
Channel 2 Action News reported that two suitcases are being investigated by police, including one near an underground parking lot. The news outlet reported that a police received the report of a suspicious package at around 7:30 a.m.
MARTA, the local bus service, said several bus routes in the downtown area were delayed due to the suspicious package, including Route 186 WB and EB trips.
It comes just hours after a firebombing incident was reported at a Fulton County law office on Sunday evening. Marvin S. Arrington Jr, a Fulton county commissioner, is a partner at the law office that was hit—Arrington & Phillips, LLP.
Atlanta authorities are investigating the firebomb incident after a device was thrown at the law office located at the 2000 block of Fairburn Road SW—some 10 miles away from the Fulton County Courthouse.
No injuries were reported, and firefighters were able to extinguish the fire, FOX 5 Atlanta reported. The backside of the building was damaged in the attack, investigators told the news outlet.
A motive behind the attack isn’t yet clear.
Speaking to WSB-TV 2 on Sunday night, Commissioner Arrington said that a hired contractor was inside his office building when a firebomb was thrown in.
“Apparently they walked up, they were behind the office, so apparently they left a gasoline can and they left a roll of toilet tissue and I assume they had left two or three, or some amount that started the fire,” Arrington said. “So hopefully they will be able to find who did this.
Newsweek has contacted the Atlanta Police Department for additional comment.
WSB-TV reported that the courthouse and the government center are both currently closed. As a precaution, no one is allowed to enter or exit the Justice Center Complex.
Update 02/07/22, 10:19 a.m ET: This article was updated with additional information.
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