Booby traps deactivated by police

Booby traps awaited police during an eviction Monday morning in North Philadelphia, police said.

Police deactivated traps set inside a dilapidated factory on the 1800 block of West Sedgley Avenue around 11 a.m., said Officer Rhonda Bowens, a police spokeswoman.

Multiple media reports say animal control was first called to the factory, and upon assessing the scene and the man and the woman living illegally inside, alerted police.

According to 6ABC, as police worked to evict the couple they were warned about the booby traps, which consisted of devices intended to ignite shotgun shells.

The couple told the news outlet that the owner set the traps as a security device, but they were able to sidestep the system.

Investigators told the news outlet that they don’t believe the shells would have gone off.

Charges, the outlet reported, will most likely follow.