4 Teens Charged In Homemade Chemical Bomb Attack

GOLDEN, CO – Four former students from Arvada West High School have been charged with throwing multiple homemade chemical bombs at an officer and a bystander, causing the officer to lose consciousness.

The First Judicial District announced that first and second-degree assault charges, as well as possession and use of an explosive device and conspiracy charges have been filed against Braiden Ulmer, Gavin Dawson, Isaac Koch, and Maxwell McCann, all 19 years old. After spending the week in the Jefferson County Jail, the men posted bond Friday.

The teens initially denied responsibility for the attack, then blamed each other when questioned by investigators, an arrest affidavit said. They said they got instructions for the bombs from the internet.

The incident took place around 12:20 a.m. April 6, when a man driving by noticed a makeshift barricade from the road near West 68th Avenue and Beech Street, police said. Traffic signs, including a stop sign, had been pulled up and piled in the road, Police Chief Link Strate said in a video.

According to an arrest affidavit, the passerby, Dominic Battista, called police about the debris in the road. When an officer arrived, Battista helped drag some of the road signs off the road.

At that point, the officer and Battista heard someone yell "F--- You A---" and a plastic bottle was thrown into the street, the affidavit said. The first bottle did not explode, but the men heard a second yelled expletive and a second bottle was tossed in the street. At that point "tons of white smoke" filled the street and the officer reported the strong smell of chlorine. The officer walked toward his squad car and lost consciousness, falling to the ground. Battista called 911. The officer was taken to a hospital and diagnosed with a chlorine gas exposure.

Responding police initially picked up the four men, and a juvenile who ended up not being charged, but released them that night.

Later, investigators from the Federal Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms determined that the bomb was made from ingredients that could be purchased at a local department store.

Investigators retraced the steps of the four men and the juvenile to a local Walmart, where they were seen on video purchasing the ingredients. The men eventually confessed. McCann told police that he had read about making the bombs on the internet and "felt the gas from the bombs was not very toxic or harmful," the arrest affidavit said.

All four older teens identified themselves on Facebook as former students of Arvada West High School. One suspect, Isaac Koch, was seen posing with a rifle on his Facebook profile picture.

The four are next scheduled to appear in court on May 10, the District Attorney's Office said.

Related: Teens Ambushed Cop At Street Barricade, Threw Chemical Bomb: Cops

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