Homemade explosives and a cache of more than 30 guns were seized at a home in North Andover, Massachusetts, Tuesday after a device exploded and damaged two vehicles, authorities said Wednesday.
Police shared an image showing assault rifles, pistols, high-capacity ammunition magazines and more weapons laid out on a table after Daniel Medina, 64, was arrested at his home on Village Green Drive. The Massachusetts State Police bomb squad was called in to help, the agency confirmed.
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Authorities were called to the scene after the explosion, according to the Essex County District Attorney's Office and North Andover police. Medina allegedly tried to hide the damage caused by the blast with spray paint.
Neighbor Lois DiNapoli tells NBC10 Boston she heard the explosion that prompted the police response.
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"It was a 'boom,'" she said.
Many of the guns found by law enforcement — which also included a SWAT team and the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives — didn't have serial numbers, officials said, and Medina's gun license expired 24 years ago.
Medina pleaded not guilty to five felony counts, including being a felon with a firearm and vandalizing property, at a hearing in Lawrence District Court Wednesday and was held without bail until at least July 12, when he'll have a dangerous hearing, officials said.
"I kind of broke down and cried a little," said neighbor Amanda Dry, a mother of two. "As a parent, just so thankful that nothing happened to my kids."
It wasn't immediately clear why investigators believe Medina had the weapons.
DiNapoli has lived in the neighborhood for decades and says she knows Medina quite well. She's never been afraid of him.
NBC10 Boston if she thought he wanted to hurt somebody.
"No, not at all," she said. "It's just that if he's not on his medication, he's going to go berserk."
A large number of police were at the scene Tuesday afternoon, and Police Chief Charles Gray thanked the community for allowing the investigation to unfold.
