Huntington Beach Man, 55, Accused Of Setting Off Pipe Bomb At Neighbor's Home In On-Going Dispute
HUNTINGTON BEACH (CBSLA.com) — Huntington Beach Police have announced the arrest of a man they said intentionally set off a pipe bomb outside a neighbor's home in an on-going dispute.
Huntington Beach Police were called to the scene of an explosion in the 8300 block of Castilian Drive, in the area of Newland and Atlanta, just after midnight Friday.
They identified the suspect as William Peltier, 55.
Investigators believe the explosive device was placed in the home's front yard and intentionally detonated. No one was hurt. Police said there was damage to the home.
Officials said after several hours of searching, Peltier was located in a nearby parking lot and arrested for possession of destructive device material.
Police told CBS2's Cristy Fajardo when they arrested Peltier there were also "bomb-making materials in his car."
In October 2007, the Press-Telegram published a story that said William Peltier, then 47, was arrested in conjunction with a pipe bomb incident in Long Beach.
That article said Peltier had many aliases (including "Crazy Billy") and a long rap sheet dating back to 1996 including charges of possessing destructive devices, possession of a controlled substance, burglary and making annoying phone calls.
The article described Peltier as being "in and out of prison constantly."
No one was injured in the Long Beach incident but authorities said two cars were damaged by what they told Fajardo was "a hot dog-sized bomb."
"There has been an on-going dispute between Mr. Peltier and his neighbors," said Lt. Kent Ferrin of the Huntington Beach Police Department. "Over his dog, and possibly his dog using his neighbor's lawn for a restroom."
Some of Peltier's neighbors told Fajardo they were aware of his long rap sheet including the arrest in the Long Beach incident. He was sentenced to five years in prison (it is unclear how much of the sentence he served) and was ordered to pay restitution.
The neighbors who were targeted in Friday's incident said they were too upset to talk on camera.
Huntington Beach Police said they are looking into Peltier's past and have not ruled out additional charges.
