Teen Says Suspicious Package At Millennium Park Was 'Misunderstanding'
CHICAGO (CBS) -- An 18-year-old Lincoln Park resident accused of causing an evacuation at Millennium Park Saturday evening told WBBM Newsradio 780 that he was taking part in a "costume play" and that it was all a misunderstanding.
Emmett DeFrisco, 18, has been charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct.
DeFrisco, of the 1600 block of North Vine Street, had a simple explanation for what happened Saturday evening when part of Millennium Park, including the Park Grill, was evacuated after police said a suspicious-looking device -- a device with batteries and wires coming out of it -- was found near the Cloud Gate sculpture, also known as "The Bean."
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The device was found there around 5:30 p.m. and authorities evacuated the area around The Bean, as well as the Park Grill below. The package turned out to be two bricks wrapped in duct tape.
"It was just me being in the wrong place at the wrong time," DeFrisco said.
DeFrisco told WBBM Newsradio 780's Steve Miller that he was taking part in what's called cosplay - costume play - specifically, Soycon, billed as the largest cosplay gathering in the Midwest.
"Me and my friends were coming back from an activity where we dress up and act as our favorite characters, and I was dressed up as a Doctor Who character. It's a BBC show," he said.
DeFrisco said that, on Friday, he had made what he calls "this little doohickey" for part of his costume that he says "had a lot of wires and stuff."
DeFrisco calls it all a "misunderstanding."
Traffic was tied up for a long while around Millennium Park Saturday night.
It's not clear what the cost to the city will be, because of what turned out to be a sizable police esponse.
Also, since people had to leave the Park Grill before they could pay their bills - there was a loss there. The executive chef reportedly said the evacuation could cost the restaurant $20,000.