Suspected Teenage Bomber Arrested

NACOGDOCHES — Authorities in Nacogdoches have found explosive devices and taken a teenager into custody. According to KETK, police responded at approximately 9:00 Thursday night to a noise complaint near the dead end of Woodcreek Drive. Complainants reported gunshots or small explosions. Officers said they confronted a suspect carrying a backpack exiting the wooded area in the 4800 block of Woodcreek. Police say the man was found to have what appeared to be improvised explosive devices in the backpack, along with chemicals that were believed to be components of the devices.

The man, John Michael Otis, Jr., age 18, of Nacogdoches, was taken into custody, and the devices were left at the secured scene. Officers immediately secured the area and contacted the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, who responded to the scene. A bomb disposal unit from the Bossier City, Louisiana, Fire Department also responded to the scene. The scene was contained by local police, with the Nacogdoches Fire Department and the Nacogdoches County EMS on the scene as a precaution.

Once on the scene, the Bomb Disposal Unit assessed the situation and made the decision to destroy the devices in place. A controlled detonation of the devices was conducted on the scene at approximately midnight Thursday night. John Michael Otis, Jr. has been charged with possession of a prohibited weapon, a third degree felony. He was taken to the Nacogdoches County Jail.