SAN FRANCISCO, March 12 (Xinhua) -- A man was arrested on Friday morning in the U.S. city of Seattle after he appeared in downtown area with a possible explosive device taped to his body, local media reported.

The man was found across the street from the main entrance to the King County Courthouse with some type of suspicious device taped to his arm, making threatening comments to people, The Seattle Times newspaper reported on its website.

After receiving a call at about 8:00 a.m. local time, police and the bomb squad responded, approaching the man with caution and examining him by remote-controlled robots.

Police said they have subdued the man and removed the device, but it was not immediately known whether it was a bomb.

The situation prompted the temporary closure of a street around the courthouse, it was reported.