Police: Street closures in NYC Times Square as bomb investigators probe ’suspicious’ car

Cops close Times Square streets for investigation

NEW YORK — Pedestrians were barred from parts of New York City’s Times Square as police closed streets to investigate a car that has been “deemed suspicious.”

Police said Saturday the bomb squad was investigating the contents of the car on 45th Street. They say the block was closed between Seventh and Eighth avenues as a precaution.

Paul Bresson, head of the FBI’s public affairs office at bureau headquarters in Washington, said agents are on the scene with the New York Police Department and that the matter is being taken seriously.

A senior Obama administration official said a Nissan Pathfinder was found with a suspicious package, but officials are not yet sure whether it was a bomb. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the official wasn’t authorized to speak on the matter.

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AP Washington bureau chief Ron Fournier contributed to this report.