From staff reports
Weapons of mass destruction charges have been withdrawn in the case against a Franklin man who had been accused of manufacturing homemade explosive devices found in Sugarcreek Borough in December.
The two felony counts of weapons of mass destruction were withdrawn during Wednesday’s preliminary hearing in Venango County Central Court for Carl Michael Roberts.
“It was determined by the (Venango County) district attorney’s office that was the best way to proceed with the case,” Sugarcreek police chief Bob Wenner said Thursday.
He remains lodged in the Venango County jail as he has been unable to post $75,000 bail.
The charges against Roberts stem from a December incident in which two devices, which Wenner described as bombs, were discovered in an apartment on Crestview Drive in Sugarcreek Borough.
A cloth bag containing pieces of metal, razor blades, nails and staples, which police believe would have “the sole purpose of shrapnel with the explosives,” was also found in the apartment, according to a criminal complaint.
One of the devices exploded when state police bomb squad technicians tried to render it inactive.
The third device was found in the Arbor Circle apartment of 22-year-old Tyler Howard, of Franklin, days before the Crestview Drive devices were found.
Roberts hasn’t been charged in relation to that case.
