Man Arrested After Allegedly Throwing a Homemade Bomb at a House in Watab Township

(KNSI) — A 26-year-old St. Joseph man is behind bars, accused of throwing a makeshift bomb at a home in Watab Township last summer.

According to the criminal complaint filed in Benton County, a man was in his garage when he heard something that sounded like fireworks going off or something hitting the garage. The man said he saw an object lying in the driveway and called police. When officers arrived, they said they saw a white plastic bag with a Grey Goose vodka bottle inside, which had been stuffed with various sizes of firecrackers. Wrapped around the bottle, officers say were three eight-ounce butane fuel canisters that were attached with duct tape. The duct tape also appeared to have lead or gunpowder pellets stuck to the inside part of the tape and a “larger looking firework object with a putty type material,” according to the criminal complaint. The bottle appeared to have broken, police say, and the bottleneck was allegedly charred with another firework nearby.

The bomb squad was called in to inspect and remove the device. Investigators say there were screws and additional fireworks found inside the bottle, and the materials were consistent with a homemade explosive device.

The man told police he believed Joshua Robert Quade was the person who may have thrown the device at his house. He said Quade believed he was the reason his house was raided by law enforcement. The man said Quade regularly drank Grey Goose vodka and said he was once at a home where Quade was staying and saw many of the same looking fireworks there.

The device was sent to the Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension for analysis. In a report dated April of this year, three partial fingerprints were discovered on the non-sticky side of the duct tape sent in for examination. The criminal complaint says two prints matched Quade.

Quade was convicted in Stearns County of felony terroristic threats in 2013 and fifth-degree felony assault in 2017.

According to court records, Quade was charged in September of this year of second-degree assault, possession of an explosive device, and negligent discharge of an explosive device. He was arrested on October 29th.

___