Boulder School Pipe Bomb: Police Arrest Student In Connection With Explosive In Centaurus High

Police arrested a 16-year-old suspect Monday night in connection with a pipe bomb-like device found that morning in his Boulder County school.

The suspect, a male student at Centaurus High School near Boulder, Colo., was arrested after police searched his place of residence and found evidence linking him to the device, reports The Daily Camera. Police have not revealed the underage suspect’s identity and say they are unsure of what his motive was.

The suspect was charged with “two counts of possession of explosive parts, which is a Class 4 felony, felony menacing, a Class 5 felony, and interference of an educational institution using a credible threat with a deadly weapon, a misdemeanor,” according to Fox affiliate KDVR in Denver. The nearby Lafayette Police Department worked on the investigation with the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, according to The Daily Camera.

Centaurus High School, part of the Boulder Valley School District, was evacuated Monday morning after a teacher found a suspicious package inside the school and took it outside. The school subsequently closed for the day, per the Denver Post. South Boulder Road, which is located near the school, was also closed for several hours, according to the Lafayette Police Department's Twitter.

Police exploded the bomb in an isolated location Monday afternoon. They said it was “'unsophisticated' and 'similar to a pipe bomb,'” according to KDVR. Nevertheless, if the bomb had been detonated in the school it could have harmed students.

Upon evacuating the school, police and bomb-sniffing dogs thoroughly searched the school for other devices. They did not find any, and the school reopened Tuesday, reports the Denver Post.

Briggs Gamblin, the communications director for Boulder Valley School District, told The Huffington Post that, while the school has brought in extra counselors for stressed students, “it's really business as usual on the campus.”

“Absenteeism is at no higher level than usual, and students are basically focused on preparing for the end of the school year,” said Gambling over the phone.