The public was alerted on Saturday by sheriff’s officials to be on the lookout for a potentially live grenade, one of two discovered at a storage unit in a Santa Monica apartment building last week. The other one exploded the next day in East Los Angeles, killing three sheriff’s detectives.
Kenny Cooper, special agent in charge of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives Los Angeles office, and Los Angeles County Sheriff Robert Luna issued a warning on Friday for anyone who sees what looks to be the device to call 911 and not touch it.
According to Cooper, the inquiry into the fatal July 18 explosion conclusively found that only one grenade went off and that the second device was not found. According to Luna, the Biscailuz Regional Training Center, the site of the explosion, has undergone numerous rigorous searches and has been closed to the public ever since.
“We haven’t found this second device yet, despite our extensive search,” Luna stated.
Investigators with the Sheriff’s Arson Explosives Detail helped Santa Monica police on July 17 recover two grenades that were discovered in a storage unit of an apartment building close to Bay Street and Lincoln Boulevard, according to Luna. Sheriff’s officials recovered the grenades and transported them to the Biscailuz facility in the 1000 block of North Eastern Avenue to be destroyed and made safe after the devices were inspected, X-rayed, and determined to be inert.
The cause of the single grenade that killed sheriff’s detectives Joshua Kelley-Eklund, Victor Lemus, and William Osborn on July 18 at 7:25 a.m. is still unknown. However, Luna stated on Friday that the ATF investigation found that only one device exploded.
The second grenade’s location is still unclear. According to Luna, the department has started an internal inquiry into how the matter was handled. Meanwhile, the inquiry into the actual blast is now under the jurisdiction of the ATF.
At least two search warrants have been issued in Marina del Rey, where police were observed investigating a boat and a storage facility, while investigators returned to the Santa Monica apartment building last week to carry out a more comprehensive search.
No details of that investigation have been released.
Get neighborhood news in your inbox. It’s free and enlightening.
Become one of the 20,000+ individuals who receive breaking news alerts and the Times of San Diego in their inbox every day at 8 a.m.
Weekly updates from San Diego communities have also been provided! You acknowledge and agree to the terms by clicking “Sign Up.” Choose from the options below.
The remains of the three detectives killed in the explosion were taken from a Los Angeles County medical examiner’s office earlier Friday and transported to a Covina funeral home in a solemn convoy of police cars.
Together, the three bomb squad deputies had over 70 years of sheriff’s department expertise.
Funeral arrangements are still being planned for the deceased deputies.
It was requested that anyone with information about either of the two devices contact the LASD Homicide Bureau at 323-890-5500 or 1-888-ATF-TIPS (8477). Crime Stoppers can be reached anonymously at 800-222-TIPS (8477).
The City News Service
