Man Pleads Not Guilty in Explosives Find
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A Simi Valley man charged with possessing illegal explosives pleaded not guilty Monday in Ventura Municipal Court.
John Donald Ommondson, 43, was arrested last week after police found 45 pounds of C-4 plastic explosives, ammunition, an anti-tank missile, a land mine, detonation cords and other military equipment in a storage locker he rented, Ventura County Deputy Dist. Atty. Don Grant said.
Ommondson is charged with two felony counts of possession of a destructive device and one felony count of possession of an explosive, Grant said. Each destructive-device charge carries a maximum penalty of three years in prison and a $10,000 fine, he said.
Police said Ommondson, a highly decorated retired Marine Corps sergeant, told them he took the materiel while in the service and had no plans to use them.
Ommondson is in Ventura County Jail in lieu of $100,000 bail.
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