Midtown

Housekeeper Finds Suspicious Powder In Midtown Hotel Room: Police

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A housekeeper at a Manhattan hotel became dizzy after finding a white powder that has been deemed suspicious, according to law enforcement and FDNY sources.

Police and fire officials were called to the Park Hyatt Hotel on West 57th Street near Seventh Avenue in midtown when the maid reported a suspicious powder inside room 1111, sources told NBC New York. Police and FBI agents with the Joint Terrorism Task Force were called to the scene, and the eleventh floor was evacuated as a precaution.

A preliminary field test of the substance by the FDNY came back positive for RDX, which is short for Royal Demolition eXplosive, according to the CDC. It is also known as cyclonite or hexogen and is said to be very explosive when combined with other ingredients. RDX is also used in some commercial products.

However, because the employee had cleaned the room, there were only trace amounts of the powder left for the NYPD to test, police said at a later press conference. All other tests came back negative for any explosive substances, and police said the preliminary test was a false positive.

Guests were allowed back inside the hotel hours later, and police said there was no credible threat to the city.

Police said a man gained unauthorized access to the room after a family had checked out Sunday morning. The man may have picked up a key to the room after a member of the family possibly dropped it. It was not immediately clear why the key wasn't deactivated when the family checked out, however.

The man entered the room at 8:30 p.m. that night, and left 10:30 a.m. Monday, according to police. Law enforcement sources early Wednesday morning said that the suspect, 55-year-old John Taddei who was said to have 38 previous arrests, was in custody with charges pending.

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