UPDATE: Police Charge Queens Man With Tossing Hoax Bomb in Police Van

UPDATE 3:30 p.m.: The NYPD has filed a laundry list of charges against the man police say tossed a hoax bomb into a police van in Times Square and then holed up in his SUV near Columbus Circle.

Hector Meneses, 52, of East Elmhurst, Queens, has been charged with nine different counts after being pulled out of his SUV this morning.

Meneses was charged with first-degree reckless endangerment (a Class D felony), first-degree falsely reporting an incident (a Class D felony), placing a false bomb (a Class E felony), making a terroristic threat (a Class D felony), third-degree criminal possession of a weapon (a Class D felony), first-degree menacing (a Class E felony), two second-degree counts of falsely reporting an incident and resisting arrest.

UPDATE 10:30 a.m.: Police have released video, above, of the suspect tossing the hoax bomb into a police van in Times Square. Police say the device was a candle and flashing LED light wrapped in a white cloth.

The officer drove the van out of a crowded Times Square before taking the device out of his van and securing it, police said. It was then determined to be a hoax.

The suspect, 52, was taken into custody this morning at 7:45 a.m. after a five-hour standoff near Columbus Circle. Police said there was limited communication with the suspect during the standoff, but he did claim to have a bomb. Police removed the suspect only after the bomb squad had determined there was no explosive device in the car.

UPDATE 9:24 a.m.: Subway service has resumed at Columbus Circle.

UPDATE 8 a.m.: Police say they have forcibly entered the car and taken the suspect into custody without incident.

Shutdowns remain in the area as the car is checked for any explosive devices. Subway service is not stopping at Columbus Circle as of 8:26 a.m.

ORIGINAL STORY

MIDTOWN MANHATTAN, NY — A man who allegedly threw a crude device into a police car in Times Square is in a standoff situation Thursday morning with police at Columbus Circle, police said.

The initial incident took place just before midnight on Wednesday when a man threw a device into a police van near 46th Street and Sixth Avenue, according to reports. It was determined to be a hoax device, police said.

J. Peter Donald, assistant commissioner for communication and information with the NYPD, tweeted a picture of the device, which appeared to be a candle and tinfoil.

All clear by the bomb squad after a suspicious object was thrown at a police car. @NYPDMTN pic.twitter.com/yOsg14RTl7
— J. Peter Donald (@JPeterDonald) July 21, 2016

Police caught up to the man near Columbus Circle at 57th Street and Eighth Avenue around 2 a.m., where he has been barricaded in his car for hours.

Columbus Circle is shut down to traffic as of 6:45 a.m., while subways are skipping the Columbus Circle-59th Street stop, according to the MTA. That effects the 1, A, B, C and D trains.

This story will be updated as the story develops.