Video shows the moment Austin police detonated a large cache of ‘homemade explosives’ inside a South Austin home on Wednesday. Authorities say the explosives were manufactured and planted by Steven Aldrich, a repeat offender with at least a decade-long history of making explosives.
Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said Thursday that Aldrich, 66, was arrested following the incident and was still on probation at the time.
“Our SWAT team is familiar with him and his bomb-making shenanigans from the past,” Davis said.
In 2018, the American-Statesman reported that Aldrich was arrested by Leander police after explosives detonated in his home, injuring him. During that incident, the APD bomb squad found explosives in his bathroom and laundry room, the American-Statesman reported.
At the time, Aldrich was on probation in connection with another explosion that occurred in his backyard.
Following that 2015 blast, federal agents found 10 explosive weapons in Aldrich’s home, along with several chemicals used to make such devices and an unregistered short-barrel rifle.
Aldrich was offered a plea deal and received eight years of deferred adjudication for possession of a prohibited weapon. He was ordered not to use explosives or firearms during his probation.
The detonation comes just days after a possible gas-related explosion on April 13 in Northwest Austin that injured several people and damaged more than two dozen homes. Witnesses said they could hear it from 25 miles away all the way in Georgetown.
Video: Austin PD detonates ‘homemade explosives’ inside South Austin home
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Video: APD detonate homemade explosives inside South Austin home
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