Homemade explosive device reportedly caused blast next to Santa Monica synagogue; police seek suspect

Law enforcement officials believe that an explosion outside a Jewish organization in Santa Monica on Thursday -- first believed to be some type of gas blast -- was actually a homemade explosive device purposely placed there, according to sources.

Santa Monica police Friday issued an alert to other law enforcement agencies, saying there was a specific man who detectives want to talk to in connection with the case. They said the man frequents synagogues and Jewish community centers and should be considered "extremely dangerous."

Law enforcement sources told The Times the explosive device contained gun powder and concrete.

The blast sent a 300-pound metal pipe encased in concrete hurtling through the air and crashing through the roof of a home next door to the Chabad House synagogue. On Thursday, police had said they believed it was a freak industrial accident.

-- Andrew Blankstein

Photo: Santa Monica firefighters remove a 300-pound metal pipe encased in concrete from the roof of a home after it was catapulted into the air from a plastic bin containing construction debris.

Credit: Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times

Comments

[jcty]

This is one crazy bomb

[Shane Unger]

I wonder if this has any connection to the man police arrested last week on 16th and Idaho who was found making pipe bombs

[CaliPHOBE]

To the #$%&# who yesterday called the media a bunch of expletives because they called the device a "bomb",

WHAT DO YOU SAY NOW ??

[dmmd]

I know of a bridge for sale in Brooklyn. I wonder if the Santa Monica police is interested in picking up a real bargain.

[Chicka]

Okay, so we have some guy who is known to frequent jewish establishments, is known to be dangerous, but they don't tell the public *who* they have to be afraid of.

?

[Jennifer555]

So why all the lies by the LA area television stations on the day the explosive device was found?

"Don't worry. It's not a bomb."

Why should people, and Jews in particular, believe anything the government or the television stations tell them?

[405]

Lousy, lazy "journalism"! No mentioning of such a basic fact as the effin' location of the place. Hello, L.A. Times, wake up!!

Good thing we have search engines to help us out when lazy so-called "reporters" fail the public.

Here's the info from the synagogue's own website:

Chabad in Santa Monica is located @
1428 17th Street, between Santa Monica Blvd & Broadway

[Mr.Reason]

It would be nice if they released some details of this suspect so we know who to look for.

[Gary Larand Hammontree]

Reprehensible, against everything good and decent in our country. Find the man and put him away.

[larry]

And one crazy bomber.

[Verballistic]

If the guy is the one who frequents synagogues & other Jewish places, law enforcement should have a pretty good description of him.

Not to take such a potentially deadly terrorist bombing lightly, but does anyone care to predict how long it will take for police to nab him?

My hunch is that they will have this would-be terrorist in custody by the start of the workday on Monday, if not before. This semi-competent psycho needs to spend the rest of his life behind bars...if he had succeeded in killing anyone it would be a valid death penalty case.

[Cromulent]

Chabad House? That was attacked in Mumbai too. Could it be that attacker's motivation here was also a fruit of the Religion of Peace?

[RUJoking?!]

With all due respect...

If the police are looking for one specific man that bombed a synagogue...

Then writing a name & description of the bomber might help.