By JONATHAN ZWEYGARDT
Hays Post

The Ellis County Sheriff’s Office was called to investigate a suspicious package in rural northwest Ellis County Sunday night.

According to a media release from the sheriff’s office, at 7:53 p.m. Sunday, a landowner reported a small suspicious looking box with a timing device and wires attached lying in the area of an oil well pump jack about 11 miles northwest of Hays.

After looking at a picture of the device, a sheriff’s deputy on scene contacted the Fort Riley bomb squad for their opinion. They dispatched a bomb squad to the area and directed law enforcement officials to block of the area.

At approximately 1 a.m. Monday, the bomb squad arrived on scene and, after examining the device with a robot and a controlled detonation, the bomb squad determined the box was not an explosive device and cleared the scene at 3 a.m., according to the sheriff’s department.

The incident remains under investigation by the Ellis County Sheriff’s Office. Officials are also asking the public to call 911 and stay clear of any suspicious looking articles or packages.