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Police: Pressure Cooker In Suspicious DC Vehicle Destroyed

WASHINGTON, D.C. (WJZ) -- A scare in Washington this weekend ahead of a big Memorial Day concert.

Capitol police discovered a pressure cooker in a parked car on the National Mall Sunday.

Mary Bubala reports.

Authorities became suspicious after seeing the device and smelling gasoline, so they called in a bomb squad to handle the situation.

It all happened just wet of the U.S. Capitol building, when officers noticed a suspicious vehicle parked between Jefferson and Madison drives.

Authorities locked down 3rd Street between Independence and Constitution avenues amid the annual Memorial Day concert on the National Mall -- the bomb squad worked the scene.

Three hours later the pressure cooker was destroyed.

No one was hurt. Police have arrested the owner of the vehicle, a Virgina man, charged with driving with a revoked license.

Pressure cookers have been used as a tool for terrorists -- like in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing that resulted in the deaths of three and debilitating injuries of hundreds of others.

Despite the scare, capitol police said their search and investigating turned up nothing harmful.

 

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