Wednesday, November 21, 2012

Explosion Update


Sources: 2 being questioned about explosion


INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) - No arrests, but investigators have served warrants in connection to the Richmond Hill blast.
Two people have been taken into custody in connection to the south side explosion that killed two people on Nov. 10 , sources tell 24-Hour News 8.
It wasn't immediately clear who was taken into custody and whether they'll ultimately be arrested or charged. The people were taken into custody at a mobile home community on the southwest side of Indianapolis. When Chopper 8 flew over the scene, officers could be seen taking items from the home.
Neighbors say the man officers took in for questioning outside the mobile home has talked to investigators before.
24-Hour-News 8 learned IMPD investigators went to the 4000 block of South Rybolt to serve a warrant and take the homeowner in for questioning in connection to the south side explosion.
Residents Whitney Essex and Brand Horton live next door to the mobile home. They were outside when the raid unfolded.
"The cops came over with machine guns and told us to get in the house," Horton said. They went inside their home and took cell phone video. It showed uncover officers at the back of the armored vehicle ready to make a move."
"It was absolutely not what I wanted to live next door to," Essex said.
Essex says the man who owns the home is Bob Leonard. She said over the past several days their neighbor talked to them about being questioned by detectives about the explosion.
"He was telling me about how they came over and asked me about the white van and if anybody came to my door to talk about the white van, that I never seen it," she said.
Essex said she saw a white van outside Leonard's mobile home for several weeks.
"He told me that it was only there for one day and that they moved a TV with it and I obviously know different because it was at his house for two weeks," Essex said.Press play in the video player for more.

Dozens of homes in Richmond Hill were damaged when the explosion hit the neighborhood. On Monday , police and the Marion County Prosecutor's office said they were looking into the explosion as a homicide investigation.

After the statement from investigators, residents of the home at the center of the explosion released a statementreacting to the turn in the investigation.
Investigators are not saying much about Leonard or the other person they took in for questioning. Check back for updates on this developing story.

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Leonard is the brother of the live-in boyfriend. Suspected of using a remote device to cause explosion.

mommaklee said...

Anon, I wondered if the two in custody might be accomplices.

cuckoohead said...

'After the statement from investigators, residents of the home at the center of the explosion released a statement reacting to the turn in the investigation.'

Anyone have that statement?

LE sounds like they are doing a thorough job but if that explosion was engineered by these people I would question the safety of the mobile home residents living close to Bob Leonard and the next door neighbors that came out to see what was going on IMO should have been told to vacate their premise pronto, not to get back in their home.

? said...

"Randall Cable, attorney for Shirley and Leonard, issued a statement on their behalf late Monday night, and said his clients requested to be left alone. Here is the statement in its entirety: Monserrate Shirley and Mark Leonard watched in bewilderment the news report that the authorities are now treating the investigation as a criminal investigation as well as a causation search. The two remain horrified at the tragic events, destruction, and loss of lives that occurred and have been cooperating with the authorities since their return to Indianapolis over the weekend. They have cooperated fully with various investigators and agencies on multiple occasions and have answered each and every question including speculation as to whether they may have been targeted by anyone. They wish for the causation of this horrific and saddening tragedy to be determined. The speculation of social media has centered on various aspects of their lives targeting them in the investigation. Throughout the days since that night the two have been pursued by media constantly requesting interviews as to how they are doing, and how they feel. Assumptions by everyone have had a field day at their expense. They continue to cooperate with the authorities and will have no further comments."

http://www.local12.com/mostpopular/story/Two-People-Questioned-in-Deadly-Indy-Home-Blast/le4Ka1WUlkyIpk4ZJIUZDw.cspx

mommaklee said...

cuckoohead,

I don't think these guys were out to blow up multiple houses, just the one. I think the mobile home residents were safe.


cuckoohead said...

mommaklee

I don't know how many times I've read about criminals that rather be killed by LE then return to prison. I don't think these people meant to kill the two people they did kill but they did and if LE was questioning them and letting them know how long they would remain in prison if convicted (like forever)then some desperate people do desperate things. This time they didn't set explosives to blow up as many cops as they could, along with themselves... this time.

?said. Wasn't the raid on Tuesday and this statement given the night before? The article on SA sounded like the two residents of the home had issued a statement as a result of this latest development.

Anonymous said...

Seems like anytime anyone says they are "cooperating fully" with law enforcement they are guilty.
Anna

brosnanfan said...

Something I found in regards to this story:

As for the investigators’ working theory of a gas explosion ignited by a remote device, experts told The Star the spark could be activated from outside the house by using a remote control to turn on an electrical appliance.

“All it needs is a tiny spark, like when a light, a television or a thermostat is turned on,” said Jay A. Siegel, a forensic and investigative science consultant who taught at Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis. “It’s entirely possible, though I’ve never heard of anyone actually doing it.”

The detonation would come after the concentration of the gas in the house reached 10 percent, Siegel said, and the fastest way to get those levels would be to unscrew a gas line leading into the house or an appliance.

“Ten percent gas and 90 percent oxygen is ideal,” Siegel said.

http://www.indystar.com/article/20121120/NEWS/121120036/Officials-suspect-gas-intentionally-released-into-home-at-center-of-Richmond-Hill-explosion?odyssey=tab|mostpopular|text|SPORTS

Earlier reports said that the furnace wasn't working, but when the thermostat was replaced by the boyfriend, it started working again. Does anyone know if a thermostat can be turned on remotely or by the use of a timer? I know lights can be put on timers, but I don't know about thermostats.

I think someone rigged it up, but more gas got into the home than was planned. I think the plan was to just damage the house beyond repair for the insurance money, not to blow up the neighborhood. It was irresponsible all the way around. What did they THINK would happen???

From the same article:

'“Monserrate Shirley and Mark Leonard watched in bewilderment the news report that the authorities are now treating the investigation as a criminal investigation as well as a causation search,” the statement reads. “The two remain horrified at the tragic events, destruction and loss of lives that occurred and have been cooperating with the authorities since their return to Indianapolis over the weekend.

“They have cooperated fully with various investigators and agencies on multiple occasions and have answered each and every question, including speculation as to whether they may have been targeted by anyone.

“They wish for the causation of this horrific and saddening tragedy to be determined. The speculation of social media has centered on various aspects of their lives targeting them in the investigation.

“Throughout the days since that night, the two have been pursued by media constantly requesting interviews as to how they are doing and how they feel. Assumptions by everyone have had a field day at their expense. They continue to cooperate with the authorities and will have no further comments.”'


Nowhere in that statement was a phrase anything like, "My clients didn't set the explosion," "My clients didn't rig anything to explode," "My clients didn't do anything that would cause their house to explode and kill two people," or anything similar.

So sad. This was probably all for insurance money, and two people died, plus a neighborhood was all but destroyed.

Nic said...

To brosnanfan:

Yes, there are thermostats that can be operated remotely via phone apps, such as the Nest Learning Thermostat.

brosnanfan said...

To Nic:

Interesting, I didn't know that. I think law enforcement should get their phones and see what is there, or access what has been deleted. I wonder if their cellphone company could tell what apps they downloaded, even without their phones?

brosnanfan said...

Here is another quote:

http://www.indystar.com/article/20121112/NEWS/121112004

Of course, inside the home there’d need to be an ignition source to coincide with just the right mix.

“Maybe a thermostat kicking in or something like that,” Worsey said.


So...would one not even need to remotely spark it, if all that needed to happen was the thermostat kicking on?

brosnanfan said...

On November 10, here was the weather in the Indianapolis area:

Hi 71°F
Lo 47°F

On November 11, here was the weather:

Hi 66°F
Lo 53°F

From what I remember, it was warm; not hot, but not cold either. I turned my heat down that night.

Maybe, since the weather was warm, the thermostat didn't kick on as soon as it might have, which allowed the home to fill with more gas than they had planned.

Of course, that's just my guess, based on what I've seen and read.

Nic said...

Interesting in this video that the homeowner wished she had been in the house at the time of the explosion and no longer alive to deal with the aftermath.

http://www.indystar.com/videonetwork/1967301154001/Monserrate-Shirley-owner-of-home-believed-to-be-source-of-explosion-talks

I have a hard time imagining an innocent person wishing they had died...I would think an innocent person would be thankful to whatever higher power they believed in for having survived.