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Feds: Los Angeles bomb technicians caused major explosion

Damian Dovarganes/AP

FILE - In this July 1, 2021 file photo police officers walk past the remains of an armored Los Angeles Police Department tractor-trailer, after illegal fireworks seized at a home exploded, in South Los Angeles. Arturo Ceja III, the man who stockpiled illegal fireworks in his South Los Angeles backyard — which were later improperly detonated by police, likely causing the massive blast in late June that rocked a neighborhood and injured 17 people — now faces a decade in federal prison. Ceja pleaded guilty Monday, Aug. 30 to one count of transportation of explosives without a license. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes, File)

By: Associated Press

Posted at 5:10 PM, Sep 14, 2021

and last updated 2021-09-14 20:10:43-04

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Los Angeles police bomb technicians made major miscalculations in June when they detonated illegal fireworks improperly and caused a massive explosion that rocked a city neighborhood and injured 27 people in June.

Federal investigators on Tuesday released a report saying the technicians overloaded a containment chamber with the illegal fireworks above the equipment’s safety rating after authorities were called to a South LA home for a huge stash of fireworks ahead of the Fourth of July.

Fireworks are illegal to sell or possess in Los Angeles.

The illegal fireworks were found at the home of Arturo Ceja III, who pleaded guilty in federal court last month to one count of transportation of explosives without a license.

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Feds: Los Angeles bomb technicians caused major explosion

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