Witnesses and Police officials said sound from fireworks were mistaken for the gunshots heard at the U.S. Embassy in Abuja on Monday.

The Embassy had released a press statement yesterday which read: “We believe there were shots fired in the vicinity of the U.S. Embassy. The Nigerian authorities have two individuals in custody. We refer you to the Nigerian police for further information.”

An embassy security official, in a phone interview yesterday, had confirmed what sounded like gunfire, adding that there had been some commotion and police officers had been deployed to the area to maintain order.

Abuja police command spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, had refuted reports of arrest.

Following further investigation, Police confirmed that they found no evidence of gunshots and witnesses in the area said the sound had come from fireworks lit by teenagers in an undeveloped plot near the embassy.

“We believe there were shots fired in the vicinity of the U.S. Embassy. The Nigerian authorities have two individuals in custody. We refer you to the Nigerian police for further information,” embassy spokeswoman Deb MacLean said on Tuesday.

According to reports, the U.S. Embassy’s claim had been thorughly investigated and found to be false.

“We have found no evidence to indicate that shots were fired around the embassy and we have not arrested anybody. We are still probing the matter to know exactly what happened,” a police spokesman said.