Teenagers Charged After Bombs, Weapons Seized

Prosecutors charged two Anaheim eighth-graders with four counts of possessing illegal explosives after police caught them with an arsenal of pipe bombs, guns and ammunition last week, authorities said Tuesday.

Detectives are still trying to determine if the boys’ parents knew about the cache of weapons, but “at this time there is insufficient evidence to file charges on any of the parents,” said Sgt. Joe Vargas, spokesman for the Anaheim Police Department.

The youths, a 13-year-old and 14-year-old who attend South Junior High in Anaheim, will be tried as juveniles, said Kevin Smith, the Orange County deputy district attorney handling the case.

Both eight-graders denied the charges during a Juvenile Court hearing Monday, Smith said. During the court proceeding, a judge also ordered them to remain in custody in Juvenile Hall, Smith said.

During searches of the boys’ home a week ago, police found a pipe bomb, a British military surplus rifle, a .45-caliber handgun, several large capacity magazines and a crude bomb of gunpowder and BBs wrapped in duct tape.

In the 13-year-old’s room, detectives also found Nazi paraphernalia, handcrafted swastikas and literature on white supremacy. Although those items may be cited in the case, there has been no evidence that the boys were involved in hate crimes, Smith said.