Man Who Allegedly Caused Explosion In Fullerton Pleads Not Guilty

ORANGE COUNTY, CA -- A convicted bank robber who was injured in an explosion in Fullerton last month has pled not guilty to felony bomb possession charges.

Tim Beck, 59, entered his plea on Monday. He was charged May 31 with two counts each of possession of a destructive device and reckless or malicious possession of a destructive device or explosive in a public place. His next court date is a June 18 pretrial hearing at the North Justice Center in Fullerton.

Beck, who is being held on $500,000 bail, was previously convicted of bank robbery in Washington state, according to the criminal complaint.

Police were called to the 1100 block of South Harbor Boulevard at 8:50 a.m. May 10 for what initially was thought to be an electrical box explosion, Fullerton police Lt. Jon Radus said. When officers arrived, they found a man -- later identified as Beck -- with serious hand and face injuries, which reportedly included missing fingers, from an improvised explosive device.

The Orange County sheriff's bomb squad was sent to the scene, Radus said, and found a second IED and ``rendered it safe,'' police said.

The blast happened in a parking lot so there was no damage to buildings or any other injuries, according to Radus.

At the time, police evacuated area businesses as a precaution: Harbor Boulevard was shut down for about three hours from Orangethorpe to Southgate avenues.

City News Service contributed to this report.