County bomb squad seizes explosive devices at Napa home

By CARLOS VILLATORO
Register Staff Writer

The rumbling felt by some West Pueblo Avenue residents Friday was not a renegade firework going off.

It was an improvised explosive device that was recovered from a nearby home and disposed of by the Napa County Sheriff’s Department bomb squad.

The bomb was recovered by Napa Special Investigation Bureau agents as they executed a search warrant at the home of Joseph Eugene Kinder on West Pueblo Avenue, according to a NSIB press release.

On Friday, agents arrested Kinder, 55, of Napa, on suspicion of a multitude of gun charges, including possession of a firearm by an ex-felon and possession of ammunition by an ex-felon, as well as possession of stolen property and drug paraphernalia.

The agents went to Kinder’s home to search it after gathering information that Kinder, a convicted felon, had guns, bomb-making components and drugs, according to the NSIB.

Officers posted near the residence watched as Kinder drove away from the home.

With the assistance of  Napa police, the officers pulled Kinder over, detained him and returned to his home to search it.

Inside Kinder’s residence, agents discovered a small arsenal including:

• 11 rifles;

• Eight pistols;

• A flare gun;

• Large amounts of ammunition;

• Several improvised explosive devices;

• Components for making explosives;

• A variety of dangerous weapons, including throwing stars, cane swords and a medieval mace.

The agents also located a large cache of illegal fireworks, a small amount of hallucinogenic drug and a methamphetamine pipe. After doing some checks, the agents learned that several of the seized firearms had been reported stolen, the NSIB said.

Police assisted with the evacuation of neighbors and closed West Pueblo Avenue for about three hours while a Napa County Sheriff’s Department Hazardous Device Team removed the explosives and hazardous materials from the home.

Bomb squad officers deemed one of the devices that was removed from the home unsafe to store as evidence and destroyed it, rattling the neighborhood with a large explosion.

Kinder was taken to jail.

The NSIB is a drug task force comprised of members from the California Department of Justice’s Bureau of Narcotic Enforcement, Napa County Sheriff’s Department, Napa Police Department and Napa County Probation Department. St. Helena and Calistoga Police Departments contribute financial support to the NSIB.

Correction: An earlier version of this article contained an incorrect age for Kinder

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