Pipe Bomb Explodes in Canoga Park

A pipe-bomb explosion slightly damaged a car in a Canoga Park residential neighborhood early Sunday in what Los Angeles police said was the latest of several similar incidents in the West Valley.

Residents on the 7900 block of Owensmouth Avenue, where the car was parked, told investigators that they heard an explosion about 1:30 a.m. However, police were not called until 9 a.m. when the car’s owner discovered the damage, Sgt. Jim Thompson said.

The bomb had been planted under the car, police said. No motive has been determined, they said. The identity of the car’s owner was withheld pending an investigation by the criminal conspiracy section, which handles explosions.

Thompson said other pipe bombs have exploded recently in the area, either under cars or in mailboxes. The incidents appear to be the result of “malicious mischief or vandalism,” he said. No injuries or major damage have resulted, police said.

Members of the police bomb squad were called to the scene to remove the device after Sunday’s explosion.