Authorities revealed in recent days how a Hawaii man was arrested after his fingerprints were recovered from sticky tape used to hold together an explosive device planted near an elementary school. On Tuesday, the United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Hawaii said that the Kahului, Maui resident had appeared before the court on charges of the possession of an unregistered explosive device.
47-year-old Robert Francis Dumaran is also charged with attempting to damage property using explosives.
Authorities say that Dumaran deliberately planted an explosive device beside in a trash can at the side of a road near the Kahului Elementary School. The device contained explosive powder, a battery to generate a charge, and shrapnel to cause damage to those within the vicinity of the device. Officers from the Maui Police Department discovered the device on July 23 this year.
The device reportedly exploded, causing damage to nearby windows and damaging the door of a nearby car. The explosion also occurred mere hours after local police and the FBI issued a statement publicly asking for witnesses to come forward with information about explosive devices that had been left in Pukalani or Kahului.
Dumaran was arrested on August 10 on a federal warrant and was taken into custody by FBI agents.
In a statement released last Friday, officers said that they had identified “several IEDs which vary in size and shape.”
Why Did He Do It?
While the motives remain unclear, Dumaran has a criminal past. Reports reveal how the Hawaii native has 30 prior convictions in the state, including felony promotion of a dangerous drug, threatening to commit terrorist acts, and domestic violence.
Dumaran is now looking at a possibility of 10 years in prison for possessing the device, and at least five years, with a maximum of 20 years in prison, for detonating the device. According to the affidavit, Dumaran is believed to have been involved with multiple other incidents involving IEDs.
