Vineland Man Admits To Having Explosives At Home: Feds

VINELAND, NJ – A Cumberland County man admitted Tuesday to possessing a destructive device and several explosive materials at his residence, authorities said.

Thomas Petronglo, 64, of Vineland, pleaded guilty before U.S. District Judge Robert B. Kugler to one count of possession of a destructive device and one count of unlawful storage of explosives, U.S. Attorney Philip R. Sellinger said in a statement.

Petronglo was found to be in possession of one destructive device (a 5 ¾-inch diameter metal can containing a quantity of an explosive mixture of potassium perchlorate and aluminum with a fuse sticking out of the device) as well as “multiple intact improvised explosive devices and explosive materials” during a home search on March 12, 2021, according to court documents.

Petronglo’s attorney, public defender Christopher H. O’Malley, told the Courier-Post that the Vineland resident is merely a fireworks enthusiast, and that the explosives were “never meant to be actually used as a bomb or anything like that, although it fit technically the statutory definition [sic].”

“He had a hobby of making fireworks and this was just one of them,” O’Malley told the publication.

The count of possession of a destructive device carries a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine; the count of unlawful storage of explosives carries a maximum penalty of one year in prison and a $100,000 fine, Sellinger said.

The U.S. Attorney credited special agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, Newark Field Division, under the direction of Special Agent in Charge Bryan Miller, with the investigation leading to today’s guilty plea. He also thanked the Vineland Police Department, the Cumberland County Prosecutor’s Office, and the N.J. State Police for their assistance with the investigation.