NEW ORLEANS – A section of the French Quarter was cordoned off for hours this morning as the NOPD responded to a bomb threat just blocks away from a standoff.
Decatur Street was closed from Wilkerson to Dumaine, an area along one side of Jackson Square that includes the popular tourist spot Cafe Du Monde.
The bomb squad was able to determine that the device that sparked the scare was not an explosive. By noon, the area began to return to normal.
Earlier in the morning, officers were seen taking one man into custody on the scene. That man was later identified as Steve Nguyen.
Nguyen fas been charged with having a fake explosive device.
The standoff occurred after a suspect barricaded himself inside a building in the 500 block of Dauphine Street, according to the NOPD.
That suspect was later identified as Eddy Roche. He was arrested and booked on a charge of aggravated assault with a firearm, according to the NOPD.