Westfield police investigate string of explosions destroying mailboxes

No injuries reported

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Image copyright 2013 Getty Images. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

Posted: 01/20/2013
Last Updated: 122 days ago

WESTFIELD, Ind. - Westfield police are investigating after several explosive devices were found in area mailboxes.

In the past three days, several of what police called over pressure devices have been detonated, causing damage, officials said.

No injuries were reported.

The devices are commonly made by combining household cleaners and aluminum foil in a 2-liter bottle, which then causes the bottle to explode, police.

“The greatest danger is if the over pressure device fails to explode and is found by an unsuspecting person. Picking up an unexploded device could agitate the chemicals, causing the bottle to explode in their hands,” according to a news release from Westfield police.

Dwight Watkins' mailbox was destroyed by one of the devices.

"It blew it clear out into the middle of the street, so it would have definitely injured someone," he said. "We still had mail in the mailbox, so we would have been getting it out of there sometime or another, so I'm really thankful we didn't get hurt."

Copyright 2013 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.


Indianapolis , IN  
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