Curtis Booker, Daily Herald

A man was taken into custody after Provo police said their bomb squad removed pipe bombs and other explosive devices from the suspect’s car Friday near the Provo Towne Center mall.

Janna-Lee Holland of the Provo Police Department said officers received a report around 10:30 a.m. of “someone brandishing what appeared to be a gun while in a vehicle” in an area near the mall.

Officers responded to the area of 1200 S. Towne Centre Blvd., where the suspect — who authorities later identified as 41-year-old Erik Whitaker of Orem — was located still in his vehicle.

Officials with the Provo Towne Centre confirmed that the suspect’s vehicle passed through the mall’s parking lot, where a witness noticed the man’s behavior, but they said the incident “escalated offsite.”

Police were called to intervene, though Holland said no gunshots were fired in the area.

Curtis Booker, Daily Herald

Sometime later, the incident came to resolution and officers were seen Friday afternoon searching the vehicle in the parking lot of a nearby Latter-day Saint meetinghouse.

“The initial investigation revealed the driver of the vehicle was in possession of a handgun and ammunition,” Holland said in a press release.

Officers believe the items discovered in the vehicle “looked like Improvised Explosive Devices,” thus prompting a response from the Metro Explosive Ordnance Disposal team, police said.

“Four total devices that appear to be pipe bombs were removed from the area for safe disposal,” Holland said in the release.

Officers blocked off a section near the west entrance to the mall from pedestrians and drivers for a time while teams were investigating, but by 3:30 p.m. it had reopened.

In a statement sent to the Daily Herald – the Provo Towne Centre reminds patrons the area is safe, and the mall is open for business.

“As part of our commitment to promoting a safe shopping environment, we maintain a highly trained staff that is prepared to respond to a variety of emergency situations. We take numerous proactive measures and coordinate very closely with local officials as a routine practice,” said Lori Carter, assistant general manager at the Provo Towne Centre.

Whitaker was booked into the Utah County Jail on suspicion of possession of an incendiary device, police said in an update Friday evening. He has not yet been formally charged with the crime.