Pickup carrying pipe bomb nearly collides with school bus

By TONY RAAP
TODAY’S NEWS-HERALD
A pickup truck carrying a pipe bomb nearly collided
Monday with a school bus, skidding to a stop just a few yards
away from a row of homes.
No one was injured in the melee, which happened around
3:50 p.m. in the 500 block of South McCulloch Boulevard.
Police failed to arrest the driver, a white male who was seen
escaping on foot.
Connor Reinemann, 15, watched as a group of bomb technicians
searched inside the rust-colored Chevy truck.
“He was going so fast. Our bus driver was lucky to stop in
time,” Reinemann said.
Officers found a handmade bomb in a cooler on the passenger
floorboard, police Lt. Rich Sloma said. The explosive
was about 12 inches long and 3 inches in diameter, Sloma
said.
It wasn’t immediately known why the man had a pipe
bomb, he said.
Officials evacuated nine homes that were closest to the
truck before detonating the bomb. Neighbors gathered outside
to see the blast, some reclining in lawn chairs.
At 6:11 p.m., a voice yelled, “Fire in the hole!” Moments
later, a thunderous explosion rang out as a ball of flame shot
into the evening sky.
Randy Parks stood about 400 yards away from the blast,
watching it with his grandson perched on his shoulders.
“That was better than a cheap Mexican firecracker,” Parks
said.
Firefighters rushed to douse the flames as thick black
smoke billowed overhead. The blast sent the truck’s windshield
flying into a nearby driveway. All that remained of the
truck’s roof was mangled, charred rubble.
Sloma said there was no apparent damage to the surrounding
homes.
“That was a successful detonation,” he said.
You may contact the reporter at raap@havasunews.com.

FOLLOWUP STORY

Pipe bomb suspect surrenders to police

By TONY RAAP
TODAY’S NEWS-HERALD
A Lake Havasu City man linked to a bizarre bomb scare turned himself in Wednesday night. The arrest ended a twoday search for Stacy J. Hakes, 23, of
Lake Havasu City, who is accused of having a pipe bomb in his truck when it nearly collided Monday with a school bus. Hakes was driving the truck when it spun out of control at about 3:50 p.m. on South McCulloch Boulevard, police Lt. Rich Sloma said. Eyewitnesses told police a man matching Hakes’ description got out of the
truck and ran away, Sloma said. Officers found a 12- inch long handmade bomb in a cooler on the passenger floorboard, he said. Police don’t know why Hakes, who was charged with misconduct involving weapons, reckless driving and criminal speeding, had a bomb in his truck. It didn’t appear that he was trying to hit the school bus, Sloma said. No one was injured in the melee. Police decided to blow up the truck, which had skidded to a stop just a few feet from a row of homes, instead of trying to move the explosive. Sloma acknowledged that much of the evidence was lost because of that.“Yes, there most likely was a print on (the explosive,)” he said. “We didn’t know what it contained, so it was decided it was not safe to move. Some explosives are unstable and if moved could go off. The No. 1 concern was
getting rid of that explosive. Public safety was more important” than securing evidence. Some have criticized the Police and Fire departments for detonating the bomb in
the middle of a residential neighborhood, saying the move put innocent lives at risk. Sloma said officials knew that the bomb was too small to cause any major
damage. “No matter what was in there, it wasn’t large enough to blow up the neighborhood,” he said. Hakes is being held on $15,000 bond at the Mohave
County Jail. Sloma didn’t know when Hakes would be arraigned. You may contact the reporter at raap@havasunews.com.