A college student will lose his foot after stepping on a homemade explosive device, according to reports. The device appears to be some kind of pressure-sensitive homemade explosive, which police do not believe was connected to any kind of terrorist act.
Connor Golden, 18, of Fairfax, Va., had just climbed down off a rock near E. 60th St. and Fifth Ave. about 10:52 a.m. when he stepped on the “shock-sensitive” explosive, Lt. Mark Torre, the commanding officer of the NYPD’s Bomb Squad, said. It was inside a black plastic bag when it exploded, a high-ranking police source said.
A disintegrated matchbook was found nearby, leading investigators to believe that someone tried to set it off sometime Friday, but left it behind when it didn’t work, the high-ranking police source said.
There was no evidence the incident was connected to terrorism, NYPD Deputy Chief John O’Connell said. Police officials believe it is an isolated incident.
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“There is forensic evidence that indicates that it was not meant to go off by somebody stepping on it. It may have not gone off at an earlier time and then it was just left there,” the Bomb Squad’s Torre said.
Still, it did some real harm, and left New Yorkers shaky and nervous on a weekend tailor-made for mischief.
Stay safe out there.
