It's rare to see people with this kind of ambition and motivation now a days. /sic
Lol!
The story is called them vandals. These were targeted attacks against a certain individual.
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Police: Jilted lover's revenge was explosive
ROTTERDAM — Larry Ahrens did not like his ex-girlfriend's new beau.
So he paid another man $100 each time to throw an explosive device at the new boyfriend's house.
Police described that scenario Tuesday as they explained their seven-week investigation into the jilted lover's bid for revenge.
Authorities said the case was solved late Sunday night after town Police Chief James Hamilton pulled his vehicle in front of the one occupied by Michael D. Chambers after Chambers hurled an explosive at the home.
Police held a news conference detailing the arrests of Ahrens, Chambers and Chamber's girlfriend, Amy L. Brzoza, who was allegedly driving the vehicle.
The victim, whose name is not being released by police, had five incidents occur at his home, which is on a small, well-manicured lot in a neighborhood off High Bridge Road. The first attack occurred March 5 when a screwdriver was used to damage the home's siding.
But then, police said, the suspects ramped up the damage, blowing up the windshield on the victim's truck on March 11, and then throwing explosive devices at the home on March 17 and March 24.
Rotterdam police, working with the State Police, the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and the Schenectady County District Attorney's office, watched the house 24 hours a day for three weeks, until the suspects returned Sunday night.
At 11:30 p.m., Chambers leaned out a car window and threw another explosive at the house, the homemade device detonating on the roof, police said. Hamilton, who was watching the house along with other officers, tried to use the vehicle he was in to block Chambers and Brzoza from escaping on nearby Sherman Street, police said. But police said the pair hit Hamilton's vehicle and that of a trooper, who suffered a shoulder injury in the crash.
Chambers, 33, and Brzoza, 31, were taken into custody after the crashes. Ahrens, 33, was stopped by police Monday morning on Crane Street. The three suspects were charged with first- and third-degree arson.
At Tuesday's news conference, Hamilton said other suspects could face arrest for throwing explosives on other occasions. Also, police are investigating a fencing operation at a garage on Crane Street in Schenectady where Chambers and Ahrens allegedly met. Chambers was released from state prison in 2007 after serving a maximum three years on a grand larceny conviction. Chambers and Brzoza became parents to a daughter in August.
The suspects were arraigned and remained to the Schenectady County Jail without bail. A grand jury might return a decision on the charges before they are scheduled for another town court appearance Friday.
The victim, who police described as in his 40s, had stopped living in his own home shortly after the windshield incident. No one was injured in the explosions, but windows in the home were shattered and siding was ripped off.
"In all the years I've ever been here, this is the most exhaustive investigation I've ever done," said Hamilton, though he would not elaborate on what other kinds of surveillance police used to make the arrests.
The explosive devices used were similar to those made by former Schenectady city school district facility supervisor Steven Raucci, who is serving 23 ½ years in state prison for placing the devices at the homes of his perceived enemies.
But Schenectady County District Attorney Robert Carney said there are no connections between these suspects and Raucci. They just happened to use the same device, a homemade container that used compressed flash power and a fuse.
"These devices are common," Carney said. "I think it was just a guy intent on wreaking some havoc and he thought he could isolate himself by getting people to do the dirty work for him."
At the East Claremont house Tuesday, the victim opened his front door a crack and said "I would like to decline comment please, out of respect to my family." The house still has siding missing near the front window, and a board is placed where a window should be upstairs.
Read more:
http://www.timesunion.com/loca.....87.php#ixzz1szmjBIns