A 14-year-old Yonkers boy, who police said had been making explosive devices, has been accused of making a device used to heavily damage a portable toilet in Yonkers’ Bregano Park.
The matter will be adjudicated by Westchester County Family Court, as required for offenders who are minors. Yonkers police said the suspect was booked by the youth division on charges of first-degree criminal possession of a weapon, criminal mischief, and reckless endangerment.
At about 8:15 p.m. on April 6, Yonkers police responded to reports of fireworks being discharged in Bregano Park’s vicinity. Officers canvassed the area, but no one was found in the park and no fireworks seen.
On the morning of April 7, a heavily damaged portable toilet was discovered in Bregano Park, police said. Due to proximity in time and location, investigators believed the reported fireworks activity and property damage were related. At that time, the police’s intelligence unit took the lead alongside the Westchester County Police Hazardous Devices Unit and FBI Joint Terrorism Task Force.According to the police, investigators determined that a teenager had been making homemade explosive devices consistent with the one used on April 6. A search of the suspect’s home led to recovery of materials used to make explosives, according to police. The police said the teen admitted to making the device used in the incident and to being responsible for other explosions in the area over the last several weeks.
Investigators have found that the suspect does not have access to other devices or explosive materials, police said. “Improvised explosive devices pose a significant danger to the public, regardless of who constructs them or their intent,” Police Commissioner Christopher Sapienza said in the news release. “Thanks to the coordinated efforts of our intelligence unit and our federal and county partners, this situation was quickly identified and safely resolved.”
This article originally appeared on Rockland/Westchester Journal News: Yonkers teen accused of making explosives, damaging porta-potty
Reporting by Michael P. McKinney, Rockland/Westchester Journal News / Rockland/Westchester Journal News
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