Metal Box Found On Peco Tower
Oct 11, 2004 11:15 pm US/Eastern PHILADELPHIA (AP) A major highway connecting Philadelphia with its western suburbs was shut down in both directions for several hours Monday night because of the discovery of what federal authorities described as a suspicious package.
The metal box attached to a Peco Energy Co. electric transmission tower had the letters "ELF" on the front, the initials of the radical environmental organization Earth Liberation Front. It was unclear Monday night whather the group, which has claimed responsibility for previous arson attacks in Pennsylvania, was responsible for the box placed on the tower.
The suspicious object was near the Schuylkill Expressway's Belmont Avenue exit, so police closed the highway in both directions between Interstate 476 and City Avenue.
"The FBI got involved because this organization has used violence in the past in order to promote their mission," FBI spokeswoman Jerri Williams said. "That is why we took action, and that is why we were so cautious."
Williams said authorities still did not know Monday night what was inside the package. Members of the state and Montgomery County bomb squads were trying to figure out what was inside the box.
Philly once again.