A seemingly routine traffic stop late Monday night in Florida escalated dramatically after deputies discovered two pipe bombs inside a vehicle, leading to the arrest of the driver on multiple felony explosive and drug charges.
According to the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, deputies pulled over a vehicle displaying a cardboard tag that read “PRIVATE” at the intersection of Smith Road and Highway 90.
The driver initially failed to produce identification, but a search of the vehicle yielded a birth certificate identifying him as 37-year-old Benjamin Adam Roach of DeFuniak Springs.
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During the search, deputies also located methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in Roach’s possession.
While conducting an inventory of the vehicle, deputies found two suspicious cylinder-shaped objects. One was described as a piece of PVC pipe with caps on both ends, and the other was a cylinder heavily wrapped in black electrical tape.
When questioned about the objects, Roach reportedly admitted they contained gunpowder. He initially denied they had fuses but later stated one of the objects did have a fuse.
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Authorities immediately notified the Bay County Bomb Squad and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF). Responding units from the Bay County Sheriff’s Office Bomb Squad examined the devices and confirmed they were indeed pipe bombs. They were subsequently disarmed at the scene.
Roach was taken into custody and transported to the Walton County Jail. He faces a litany of charges, including making a bomb, possessing explosives, possession of a controlled substance, tampering with evidence, possession of drug paraphernalia, and several other related offenses.
Roach is being held without bond. The investigation is ongoing.
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