Brother of man who put rice cookers in NYC station says ‘he’s not a bomber. It’s a cry for help’

The brother of a man who triggered a bomb scare by placing two rice cookers in a New York subway station says his sibling called him asking for help after cops announced they were searching for him. 

Larry Kenton Griffin II, 26, of Bruno, West Virginia, was caught on surveillance footage pushing a shopping cart with the items into Fulton Street station in downtown Manhattan.

Jason Griffin, Larry’s brother, explained to DailyMail.com that his brother is homeless and mentally ill and believes his actions may have been ‘a cry for help’. 

He said: ‘There was no evidence that he would ever be a ‘rice cooker bomber’, he has no political affiliation and as far as I know is a registered Democrat.’   

New York Fire Department and police investigated, concluding that the two devices found were not explosives.

A third suspicious package was found in a Chelsea garbage can, which was also determined to be an unmodified rice cooker.   

Larry called his brother when he realized police were looking for him. 

 

Jason spoke to his brother Larry Griffin (above)shortly after the incident at Fulton Street Station

Jason Griffin (left), 44, the brother of Larry (right) spoke to DailyMail.com and said that he did not believe his brother was a risk to society. He spoke to his brother shortly after the incident at Fulton Street Station

Surveillance video obtained by police shows Larry Griffin, 26, pushing a shopping cart with rice cookers inside and leaving them in Fulton Street Station and on one of its platforms

Surveillance video obtained by police shows Larry Griffin, 26, pushing a shopping cart with rice cookers inside and leaving them in Fulton Street Station and on one of its platforms

Police and fire department were dispatched to investigate at Fulton Street Station after a call after 7am, shortly before rush hour begins

Police and fire department were dispatched to investigate at Fulton Street Station after a call after 7am, shortly before rush hour begins

Griffin, 44, who lives in New London, Connecticut, said: ‘He was held-up in a house, I didn’t know what to do.

‘He was in the house knowing they were looking for him, he wanted to run and asked me to help him run.

‘I told him no. I tried to tell him to turn himself in and be calm but once I gave him words of rationality he hung-up.

‘The FBI is on my side trying to help him. He is scared and innocent.’ 

Jason revealed that two days prior to the incident his brother was allegedly refused help when he tried to check himself into a psychiatric hospital. 

He said: ‘He is bipolar and has never been medicated. We come from the South with not a lot of parental instruction from the family. He needs to be medicated.

‘He called me when he was trying to get into a psych ward that was the last contact before today.

‘It basically comes down to… we present well so no one takes us seriously. If you’re well-dressed and shaved you can’t be crazy in their eyes.

‘He said they weren’t going to admit him, he was worried and was calling (me) on a woman’s phone.’

After leaving the stranger’s side that was the last he heard from Larry until today.

NYPD officers stand inside the Fulton Street subway hub as the area is sealed off to investigate a suspicious item on Friday

NYPD officers stand inside the Fulton Street subway hub as the area is sealed off to investigate a suspicious item on Friday

Griffin (above) was last seen on surveillance footage wearing an Amazon 'Prime Day 2018' t-shirt, he was seen pushing a shopping cart into the popular subway station

According to family members Griffin ha been living on the streets of New York since March this year

Griffin (above) was last seen on surveillance footage wearing an Amazon ‘Prime Day 2018’ t-shirt, he was seen pushing a shopping cart into the popular subway station

Jason, a chef and artist, said that his brother had been living homeless on the streets of New York since March and considered it to be an ‘adventure’.

He explained that his brother found sleeping in boxes ‘fun’ and that he pushed a shopping cart around regularly.  

Jason claims his brother found the three rice cookers in front of a sushi restaurant.  

‘He put them in his shopping cart and went on a little adventure, how he ended up on the subway I don’t know,’ he said.

Griffin was last seen inside Fulton Street Station, one of New York’s busies commuter hubs, which is a short distance away from World Trade Center.

His brother said he believes Larry needs help. He said: ‘I don’t know I’m just guessing, it may have been a cry for help. 

‘Like ‘someone pay attention to me’ or it could have been a misunderstanding. He does not understand the world, he’s not mentally mature.

‘I’ve been trying to teach him better you can’t when they are young.’

Jason Griffin (above) said his brother Larry was scared when he called him

After tried to reason with his brother Larry (above, pictured aged five) and allegedly told him not to go on the run he hung-up

Jason Griffin (left) said his brother Larry (right, pictured aged five) was scared when he called him. After tried to reason with his brother and allegedly told him not to go on the run he hung-up

Fulton Street Station is a busy commuter hub and a short distance away from the World Trade Center

Fulton Street Station is a busy commuter hub and a short distance away from the World Trade Center

A traffic officer directs traffic outside Fulton Street Station after a suspicious package was reported on the subway

A traffic officer directs traffic outside Fulton Street Station after a suspicious package was reported on the subway

His father, Larry Griffin Senior admitted he had not seen his son in a while but said he would occasionally speak to him on the phone, NBC reported. 

Law enforcement say he was arrested several weeks ago in Harlem for drug possession, according to the site.

Griffin Senior added that his son, originally based in West Virginia, had fled after being charged with a crime.

Chief Deputy M.A Mayes of the Logan County Sheriff’s Department revealed to DailyMail.com that Griffin has had run-ins with the law dating back to 2011, with a warrant currently outstanding for his arrest.

He had been arrested at least three times within the past eight years with crimes, NBC reported.

The crimes included including possession of a controlled substance involving weapons and the use of obscene matter to seduce a minor and displays of obscene material to a minor.  

Griffin (above), 26, had gotten into trouble with the law previously

Griffin (above) had been arrested at least three times in the last eight year

Griffin (above), 26, had gotten into trouble with the law previously. He had been arrested at least three times in the last eight year 

John Miller, Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism for the NYPD, spoke to outside of Fulton Street Station. He said that the timings of the rice cookers being discovered led him to question whether it was place deliberately as a 'hoax device'

John Miller, Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism for the NYPD, spoke to outside of Fulton Street Station. He said that the timings of the rice cookers being discovered led him to question whether it was place deliberately as a ‘hoax device’ 

Griffin sent a series of sexually explicit messages to a minor in July and November 2017, according to a criminal complaint.

One of the messages included a homemade video showing a man engaging in sex acts with an unspecified animal.

In March a warrant was issued for his arrest for failure to report for drug screening which is part of his pre-trial bond supervision.

Griffin has not been named as a suspect for the incident on Friday and his whereabouts are currently unknown.

Police were called at around 7.15am to investigate the two suspicious packages, which were later deemed to be safe.

NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Intelligence and Counterterrorism John Miller said the timings of the items being found led officials to investigate whether they were intentionally placed as a ‘hoax device.’

Miller added: ‘The time, rush hour; the place, a subway station; the item, rice cookers that be mistaken for pressure cookers. 

‘It certainly is the kind of thing that we would want to know why is he placing them there and what is the purpose of that.’

NYPD police vehicles respond near the scene of a suspicious package near the Fulton Street subway station

NYPD police vehicles respond near the scene of a suspicious package near the Fulton Street subway station 

Authorities were able to ascertain the two rice cookers had not been converted into anything dangerous and were not a risk of being explosive

Authorities were able to ascertain the two rice cookers had not been converted into anything dangerous and were not a risk of being explosive

They are currently unsure of the mans’ motives and intentions.

Miller added: ‘As you all know, there are people with shopping carts who pick up things on the street and put them back down on the street, and that’s kind of a fact of urban life.

‘I don’t know what the deliberate act is, whether it was to breed fear and alarm the public, or whether he was discarding items he was no longer interested in.’

Shortly after the first two were deemed safe, a third was called-in after being found in a garbage can in Chelsea on West 16th and 7th Avenue.

The item was considered safe, similar to the other two devices, according to police. All three of the cookers are the same make and model. 

In a tweet, NYPD Chief of Counterterrorism James R. Waters said the devices were cleared without incident, and emphasized that they were ‘NOT explosive devices’.

‘Out of an abundance of caution officers have searched nearby stations,’ Waters added. 

One of the cookers was found inside Fulton Street station, and the other was found on a platform that carries 2 and 3 trains – within an hour Subway service resumed. 

MTA thanked riders who noticed the packages adding that they were ‘so relieved’ none of the items posed ‘an immediate risk to our customers.’

NBC reported that Mayor Bill de Blasio addressed the issue on a regular radio segment on WNYC.

De Blasio said: ‘We want to take these situations carefully and very, very seriously and act carefully on them. 

‘And this is the classic if you see something say something.’ 

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk