Police discovered more than two dozen pipe bombs inside a White Plains apartment while investigating an explosive found on a quiet, tree-lined block Monday morning — providing a terrifying answer to the mysterious series of thunderous booms neighbors had been hearing for weeks.
Cops arrested Raymond Elders, 65, on several charges, including use of a weapon of mass destruction, after authorities found 25 complete pipe bombs and explosive-making materials at his Odell Avenue apartment, CBS New York reported.
Elders was cuffed following an investigation that was sparked when a police officer spotted a mysterious explosive device near his doorway.
Cops had been responding to reports of a possible transformer explosion after a powerful boom — which residents have heard multiple times in recent weeks — shook the neighborhood around 4:30 a.m.
The device was rendered safe after a shelter-in-place was ordered for surburban neighborhood.
The alleged explosive fiend had black and blue residue on his hands and was holding a lighter when police took him into custody, federal authorities said, according to the news station.
Surveillance footage obtained by the outlet from March 18also allegedly captured Elders standing in the middle of the street, lighting a device, and then throwing it into the street.
He then quickly scurried away and tightened his hooded sweatshirt around his face after an explosion was heard, the clip showed.
Authorities believe the hoard of explosives may be tied to a neighbor dispute, WABC reported. However, investigators have not released an official motive.
During an initial appearance in federal court in White Plains, prosecutors called Elders’ crimes “the height of recklessness,” and urged that he could have killed himself or others by harboring the bombs, CBS reported.
Elders’ defense lawyer told the courtroom that he struggles with addiction problems. A judge ultimately ordered him to be held in federal custody without bail.
Nearby resident Yulissa Severino told Lohud on Monday that she heard two loud booms overnight, similar to blasts heard in the neighborhood in recent weeks.
“Those other times I thought someone was going to blow up the block, it was so loud, like they were experimenting,” Severino said. “There’s a war going on, so you think about that.”
A second person initially taken into custody is being treated as a witness, WABC reported.
“We want to assure the residents of White Plains that their safety remains our highest priority. We can confirm that there are no explosive materials currently present in the first-floor apartment at 11 Odell Avenue, and that the immediate neighborhood is safe,” White Plains Commissioner of Public Safety Wade Hardy said in a statement.
“The subject of interest, who was taken into custody by the White Plains Police Department, is a White Plains resident—a white male in his 60s. This morning, he has been turned over to the FBI,” Hardy said.
The FBI New York office did not immediately respond to The Post’s request for comment.
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