MESA, AZ — Mesa police have arrested two people in connection to a home explosion caused by a large firework last weekend.
Around 9:30 p.m. on Saturday, officers were dispatched to a neighborhood near Arizona Avenue and Guadalupe Road for an emergency. A homeowner reported receiving an alert on his front door camera about someone outside, and when he approached the door, he heard a loud bang. Police say the glass on the man's front door shattered and caused a minor head injury.
There was extensive damage to the front entryway of the home.
The emergency call was first thought to be "shots fired," but the damage "far (exceeded) what a gunshot could cause," police say. Investigators believed the damage was caused by a large firework or another explosive device.
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Police say two Phoenix men, an 18-year-old and a 19-year-old, are believed to be connected to the incident.
Officers were reportedly able to track down the suspect vehicle captured on home surveillance video. Multiple large fireworks were found during a search of the car.
One of the suspects reportedly admitted to intentionally lighting a firework and throwing it at the home because “a friend of his prompted him to do it.”
Police say one of the suspects turned himself in and the second suspect was arrested in Tempe about an hour after the explosion. Tempe police say he admitted to driving around with the intent to light fireworks off, but officers were unaware of the incident in Mesa.
The pair was booked into jail on charges of arson of an occupied structure, criminal damage, and aggravated assault.
Homeowner Nick Scherr, spoke with ABC15 on Wednesday and says he is looking forward to sleeping in his home and not worrying those involved are out there, "As soon as he said the words ‘he’s been arrested,’ I felt 100 pounds lighter.”
According to police documents, the suspects and victims do not have any connection, and it appears to have been a random attack.
“If I had opened my front door, that explosion would have been in my face,” Scherr said. “I could care less about the damage to the house or even the cuts, it was the mental anguish and stress and post-traumatic stuff, it is very real.”
Scherr shared a message for the men accused of the attack.
“You may have thought it was funny or a joke but it’s not,” Scherr said.
