Sheriff: Nebraska man arrested after hostage situation involving an explosive

MADISON COUNTY, Neb. (KTIV) - A Norfolk, Nebraska neighborhood had to be evacuated Thursday afternoon after, investigators say, a man held two people hostage inside a vehicle threatening to blow them up with an explosive device.

Nebraska authorities say at about 2 p.m. on May 11 they got a call reporting two people were being held hostage inside a car that was traveling towards Norfolk. The caller claimed a man inside the vehicle was threatening to detonate a “partial stick of dynamite.” That caller said they were communicating electronically with one of the passengers in the vehicle.

The Madison County Sheriff’s Office says its deputies were able to stop the car in Norfolk near the intersection of Maple Avenue and N 13th Street.

The sheriff’s office says deputies were able to remove a male subject from the vehicle and take him into custody. Authorities say two females, the driver and a passenger were also removed from the vehicle.

According to the sheriff’s office, an explosive device was found inside the vehicle. The Nebraska State Patrol bomb unit was called in to dispose of it. Residents near the 1200 block of Maple Avenue were asked to evacuate as a precaution.

The explosive device was sent to a laboratory so it could be properly identified.

Following the investigation, 37-year-old Kelly Red Tomahawk of Battle Creek, Nebraska was arrested. He was charged with terroristic threats and false imprisonment. He’s currently being held in the Madison County Jail.