Federal investigators this morning, are scratching their heads and are working to figure out exactly how military grade high C-4 explosives ended up in a Crestview neighborhood, in Florida.
According to a WEARTV report, “Military explosive discovered in Crestview neighborhood”:
“The State Fire Marshals office says “C-4″ was found in a wooded area near Martin Luther King Junior Avenue and Lloyd Street Sunday. They believe the explosives belong to a man on active military duty – who was arrested in a domestic incident January 2nd.”
The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is working to determine how C-4 explosives got off a military base. The FBI is also investigating the incident.
C4 is composed of explosives, plastic binder, plasticizer and usually a marker or odorizing taggant chemical such as 2,3-dimethyl-2,3-dinitrobutane (DMDNB) to help detect the explosive and identify its source. C-4 is used primarily in breaching obstacles or demolition of large structures where large charges are required (Satchel Charge). (see website: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/munitions/explosives-compositions.htm).
According to the report there were two caches of C-4 found:
“The first cache was discovered on December 29, at the home of Vaughn Pottle. His girlfriend found the explosives while she was throwing out his stuff. He was charged with trying to murder her on Dec. 16. This discovery was in Baker, not Crestview.
The second box was found “Sunday night in the woods west of downtown Crestview.”
Where exactly the explosive came from was not mentioned in the report neither was the military man’s identity.
5 days ago a Fort Hood soldier Tyler Glen Patrick, 23, was released on $25,000 bond Thursday after his arrest in connection with what prosecutors said was an attempt to sell a stolen 1.25-pound block of C-4 explosive (source: http://www.kwtx.com/ourtown/home/headlines/Fort-Hood–Bond-Set-For-Soldier-Charged-In-Explosives-Theft-238515141.html).
It is unclear if this most recent incident is in any way related to the Ft. Hood theft of C-4.
The Department of Defense had no comment regarding the incident in Florida or the incident at Ft. Hood , Texas.
In May 2013 559 pounds of explosives, including C-4 was stolen from a federal storage facility in Montana Security concerns after 500 pounds of still missing explosives were stolen from a federal bunker (source: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2013/05/10/500-pounds-still-missing-explosives-highlights-federal-security-flaws/).
See also website: http://www.homelandsecurityus.com/archives/197