Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives

KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Tammy Dickinson, United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri, announced that a Lawson, Mo., man was charged in federal court today with illegally possessing a pipe bomb.

 

Josh Louis Dubrel, 20, of Lawson, was charged in a criminal complaint filed in the U.S. District Court in Kansas City, Mo. Dubrel, who was arrested today, remains in federal custody pending a detention hearing scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017.

 

Today’s criminal complaint alleges that Dubrel possessed a pipe bomb that was not registered to him. The complaint describes the pipe bomb as “a six to eight-inch-long, one-inch nominal diameter metal pipe with metal end caps attached, containing explosive material, complete with a green pyrotechnic fuse extending out the top opening.”

 

According to an affidavit filed in support of the complaint, Dubrel has been making and storing pipe bombs at his residence, which is directly across the street from Lawson High School and Lawson Middle School.

 

Law enforcement officers executed a search warrant at Dubrel’s residence today and placed him under arrest. During a search of the residence, officers discovered a brown briefcase in Dubrel’s bedroom that contained a completed metal pipe bomb as well as five metal pipe nipples, five metal end caps, a pyrotechnic fuse, plumber putty, an electronic firing system, two light bulbs, and apparent explosive material.

 

Dickinson cautioned that the charge contained in this complaint is simply an accusation, and not evidence of guilt. Evidence supporting the charge must be presented to a federal trial jury, whose duty is to determine guilt or innocence.

 

This case is being prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys Adam Caine and Justin Davids. It was investigated by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.