By By ANDY HAMILTON / Niles Daily Star
NILES - A warrant was issued Wednesday in connection with a weekend explosive complaint.
Tommy Leonard Caufman, 60, of 1073 Carberry Road, Niles, was charged with two felony offenses stemming from an incident on the morning of Sunday, June 11 at his residence in Howard Township.
The warrant was issued by Cass County Prosecutor Victor Fitz and charged Caufman with placing an explosive device near property and falsifying a report of a felony.
The first charge carries a sentence of 15 years and/or a $10,000 fine.
False reporting of a felony is a 4-year sentence and/or a $2,000 fine.
First Lt. Mike Brown of the Michigan State Police Post 53 in Niles said there was a motive that involved a child custody dispute.
Michigan State Police Troopers were called to Caufman's residence at about 9 a.m. Sunday on a report of a suspicious object on a large propane tank. Brown said someone living at the residence found a suspicious object and called it in to the police.
Troopers found what appeared to be a pipe bomb on top of a 1,000 gallon propane tank near a pole building. Brown described the object as being an 8 or 9-inch long pipe cylinder, about 2-inches in diameter, with screw-on caps and a fuse on one end.
The device did not contain a timer, Brown said.
Neighboring homes within 1,000 feet were evacuated for safety reasons.
The Michigan State Police Bomb Squad from Grand Rapids responded. The device was removed using a remote control robot then rendered safe via the robot. Brown said the disposal of the pipe bomb, which was found to be real by the bomb squad, was completed by early afternoon.
A press release issued Wednesday by the Michigan State Police stated “troopers investigating the incident noticed unusual circumstances in the reporting of the explosive device and developed a suspect from the initial investigation.”
Troopers executed a search warrant of the residence and outbuildings at 1073 Carberry Road on Monday, June 12. The bomb squad from Grand Rapids and a K-9 trained to detect explosives were involved in the search.
Brown said the search was conducted to locate any other explosive devices that may have been present on the property.
There were no other explosive devices or ingredients to manufacture additional devices discovered during the search, Brown said.
Arrangements were made for the suspect to turn himself in on Thursday at the Niles Law Enforcement Complex.