He detonated one of the devices, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said.

TAMPA -A Tampa man who detonated a “pipe bomb” has pleaded guilty to possessing the device, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Middle District of Florida said.

Joseph David Caltagirone, 61, of Tampa,  pleaded guilty Monday (Dec. 10) to possessing an unregistered destructive device. Caltagirone faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not been set.

According to court documents, on April 11, members of the Tampa Police Department bomb squad were conducting training on N 12th Street in Tampa when they heard a loud explosion. The officers saw a large greyish-white smoke plume several blocks away, rising above E Columbus Drive. They canvassed the neighborhood, eventually ending up at Caltagirone’s home

Inside that residence, officers discovered PVC piping, a hobby fuse, and precursor chemicals such as potassium nitrate, air float charcoal, and sulfur.

Officers said they also discovered an assembled destructive device resembling a “pipe bomb.” The device had been constructed using a PVC pipe and an improvised wire initiator. The pipe contained an explosive mixture called Tannerite.

Exploding the device would have projected PVC fragments at high velocities in all directions.

Caltagirone admitted to having designed,constructed, and possessed the devices.  

U.S. Attorney | Courts | Crime | Tampabay News

#USAttorney #Courts #Crime #TampabayNews