Kentucky cops find explosive devices during traffic stop. More bombs found at a home
Two Kentucky men were found in possession of improvised explosive devices during a traffic stop in Anderson County on Monday, according to Kentucky State Police.
The traffic stop happened on Anderson Crossing Drive. During the stop, the driver gave a KSP trooper permission to search the vehicle, and the trooper found two IEDs in the rear floorboard, according to KSP
The bombs were filled with black powder and lead pellets, according to KSP. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms’ bomb squad was called to the scene remove the devices and detonate them elsewhere.
The IEDs were red, had a visible fuse and had “Fed Case” written on the side, according to court documents. The driver of the vehicle, 41-year-old Ronald Coffman, from Mercer County, told officials he wrote “Fed Case” on the side as a joke because he knew making/possessing the devices would be a federal crime.
Coffman also told officials that he and the passenger, 36-year-old Zebadiah Murphy, from Anderson County, made the bombs at Murphy’s home, according to court documents. Coffman also said they planned to use the devices to blow up a hornets nest.
Investigators later searched Murphy’s home on Hammonds Creek Road and found two additional IEDs and items needed to make the devices, KSP said. Investigators also found several firearms, improvised firearm suppressors and restricted ammunition, such as armor-piercing bullets.
Coffman and Murphy were both charged with third-degree use of a weapon of mass destruction, according to court records. Murphy was additionally charged with possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, possession of a handgun by a convicted felon and using restricted ammunition during a felony (no shots).
Coffman was additionally charged with DUI and several other drug and traffic offenses, according to court records. They are both being held at the Franklin County Detention Center.
Coffman’s bond is set at $25,000 while Murphy’s bond is $15,000, according to court records.
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