AHWATUKEE - A Valley man is under arrest accused of being a bomb-exploding menace to his neighbors.
A 52-year-old Ahwatukee man is behind bars and many of his neighbors tell 3TV they could not be happier. They say Robert Franklin has been terrorizing their quiet suburb with homemade bombs for nearly three years.
One neighbor tells 3TV, "He’s been throwing M-80s around my house, especially my house because we’re right by the mailboxes."
Another woman says, "Just the bombs that have been going off across our street, they’ve been going off late at night."
Phoenix police and fire investigators, including members of the Bomb Squad, raided a home in the neighborhood and arrested Franklin. The suspect was described to 3TV by other neighbors as a "bomb-making menace."
"It’s been an ongoing investigation, actually, over the course of the last several years. There’s been a lot of explosions all over the neighborhood, explains a police spokesperson."
Neighbors and investigators tell 3TV Franklin has been "terrorizing" the neighborhood with explosive devices similar to powerful M-80s for several years. Following the raid, several firearms and materials were transported in a bomb disposal unit after being removed from Franklin’s home.
Franklin is being held on marijuana charges but investigators are trying to connect the dots. They are continuing with their investigation into the explosives and firearms.
