Floral Park hotel evacuated after call

A Floral Park hotel was evacuated and a man arrested after he called police claiming he was being held against his will and that there was possibly a "device" in his room, but both claims were found to be false, Nassau County police said Saturday night.

Around 6 p.m., the man called 911 from a coin-operated laundry near the Floral Park Motor Lodge, 30 Jericho Tpke., saying he may have been held against his will, said Det. Sgt. Anthony Repalone. He also told police there "may be contraband or a device" in his room at the hotel, which is down the street, Repalone said.

Police responded, but "as the story was unfolding, his credibility was lacking for a number of reasons," Repalone said. "We suspected he was ingesting a number of narcotics."

However, police took the threat seriously, especially because it was the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, he said.

The hotel and surrounding businesses were evacuated and the agency's bomb squad entered the room at 10 p.m. There were no weapons or devices, but the suspect's room was "significantly damaged," Repalone said.

The suspect, who was not identified, was being evaluated at Winthrop-University Medical Center in Mineola Saturday night and would likely face charges of possession of narcotics, felony criminal mischief and filing a false police report, Repalone said. Officials were trying to determine how long the suspect had been staying at the hotel.