FBI leading investigation into explosion at Union home; Man in custody

UNION, Montgomery County — A man is in custody and the Federal Bureau of Investigation is leading the probe into an explosive device that detonated inside a Union home Tuesday night.

Connell Gubser, 68, remains booked in the Montgomery County Jail Wednesday morning on a preliminary charge of unlawful possession of a dangerous ordnance, according to online jail records.

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Fire crews, police, and the Dayton Police Bomb Squad responded to the home in the 100 block of Warner Drive around 4 p.m. Tuesday after 911 callers reported hearing an explosion.

“There was an explosion next door and smoke was rolling out of their house,” a 911 caller said. “I’m not really sure what happened. It was a very muffled low boom. I was able to see a bright flash.”

Neighboring homes were evacuated during the investigation, which was later expanded to include the FBI who is leading the law enforcement investigation.

“It was an energetic device – something along the lines of firework type material,” Union Assistant Fire Chief Zach Smith told News Center 7, when describing the device found.

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Gubser suffered minor injuries in the incident but was not hospitalized, Smith said.

Additional details about investigation were not immediately available from the FBI.

In January 2019, a standoff involving SWAT units took place in the same block of Warner Road, however it was not immediately known if Tuesday’s incident involved Gubser.

We’ll continue to update this story as new details become available.

Cox Media Group