Burlington man arrested with multiple explosive devices discovered in his backpack at police station
A Burlington man is facing multiple charges after police found several improvised explosive devices in his backpack late Wednesday while he was being questioned at the Burlington Police Department.
Aaron Jenkins, 38, is charged with three counts of unauthorized possession of offensive weapons, a class D felony and three counts of interference with official acts resulting in injury, a serious misdemeanor.
According to a criminal complaint, at approximately 9:21 p.m., officers were dispatched to a residence on the 1300 block of North Sixth Street after receiving a 911 call.
When police arrived, they spoke with a man who said he saw the suspect walking through his yard with a walking stick and wearing a backpack.
The man said he told the suspect to leave, at which point the suspect, identified as Jenkins, motioned as if he were going to punch the man.
The man told police the suspect took off, running south toward the cemetery located in the 1200 block of North Sixth Street.
Officers were able to locate Jenkins, who they say claimed he had a gun and warned police not to come near him.
According to police, Jenkins continued to disobey commands to stop walking and show his hands before running into a ravine located in the cemetery.
Police were able to detain Jenkins in the ravine, but two of the officers suffered lacerations to their knees and one to their hand, according to the criminal complaint.
The suspect was then transported to the Burlington Police Department for an interview.
When officers searched his backpack, they say they discovered what appeared to be an improvised explosive device and called in the state fire marshal.
Once they arrived, the fire marshal found two more explosive devices inside the backpack and a small bag containing two grams of marijuana, the complaint states.
The fire marshal was able to deconstruct all three devices and told police they were active explosives devices.
On Thursday, detectives from the Burlington Police Department’s Criminal Investigations Division and agents from the Iowa State Fire Marshal’s office executed a search warrant of Jenkin's residence.
During the search, court documents state, officers located additional materials used to construct explosive devices
The suspect is being held at the Des Moines County jail on a $34,000 cash-only bond pending a court appearance.
This article originally appeared on The Hawk Eye: Burlington man facing several charges after police find explosives
