Bomb Making Materials Explode Inside Bucks County Home
By Elizabeth Hur
LEVITTOWN, Pa. (CBS) -- Windows blown out – after a Bucks County home was rocked by an explosion.
Police say a man who lived there had a bomb-making lab.
Police were called out early Monday to Midwood Lane in Levittown. The homeowner claimed a propane tank had exploded, according to police, but investigators soon deemed the circumstances suspicious.
"No comment, please, no comment."
Only Eyewitness News caught up with the suspect, 30-year-old Thomas Piscione's parents who declined to comment but asked that we don't jump to conclusions. They called the allegations, a possible misunderstanding.
"We haven't talked to him yet, ok?"
But for police, they maintain the evidence speaks for itself.
Lt. Terry Hughes with Bristol Township Police explained, "The guy had a lab in the house, a lab for making bombs. He had all the ingredients or precursors to make a bomb."
Neighbor, Brian McMonigle recalled, "We heard a big explosion. It was pretty loud too."
Michele McMonigle added, "And then we heard the sirens and stuff like that but it was pretty loud, it rattled the house."
It was shortly after 1am Monday, police and fire responded to the Levittown home for a report of an explosion.
Lt. Hughes said, "It seems that he took ammonium nitrate and introduced that into the fire place for some unknown reason and the fireplace exploded."
Chris Simmons said, "Yea it's scary. It's really scary. I guess you really don't know your neighbors."
Simmons is the suspect's next door neighbor. Simmons says the 30-year-old lived alone and kept to himself. Others added he was quiet but friendly. Everyone agreed, they did not see this coming.
"Potentially that house could have blown up, the house next to it could have blown up and other houses in the area. He's very lucky he was not injured seriously. In the house, we have located several 'How to build a bomb' books in there. He also stated that building bombs was a hobby," Lt. Hughes went onto say, "He had all the stuff ready to go to make homemade bombs but there was no bombs found it was all separate in like an assembly line."
According to officials, Piscione works for Amtrak as a Communications and Signaling maintainer.
Piscione was arraigned on charges of Risking a Catastrophe and Recklessly Endangering Another Person. Late Monday, he remained in jail unable to post his bail set at 10 percent of $1,000,000.