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San Diego bomb factory must be burnt down

Ap
Thursday 02 December 2010 01:00 GMT
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A house where a man was operating a bomb factory is so full of dangerous explosive material that it must be burnt down, authorities in San Diego said.

"There is no viable method to render the property safe," Sheriff Bill Gore said. "It is also not habitable. The most effective way is to destroy the residence by fire."

Images of the rental home of George Djura Jakubec showed it full of hand-grenades and powdered explosives in jars and in clumps on the floor.

Mr Jakubec, a 54-year-old unemployed software consultant, pleaded not guilty last week to illegally making and possessing explosives and to robbing banks.

Investigators suspect him of committing two hold-ups in San Diego County over the summer. He remained jailed on $5.1m bail. Authorities say it is unclear what Mr Jakubec may have planned to do with the materials.

The explosives were discovered after a gardener was injured last month in a blast when he stepped on explosive powder in the back garden. Mario Garcia, 49, suffered eye, chest and arm injuries and was recovering.

Last week, explosives experts pulled out of the house about 20 miles north of San Diego, saying it was too dangerous to continue investigating and removing the substances.

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