I went to school with this guy. Last time I saw wim was only a couple of weeks ago. I kn ew we was playing the mad scientist but I didn't think he would go this far. Too bad they confiscated his Barrett. Guess he should have left it in the barn More charges filed in explosives case
By GREG CUNNINGHAM
[email protected] The Amarillo Globe-News
WAKA - Things were rapidly getting back to normal Wednesday after several days of extremely unusual activity caused by the discovery of explosive devices at a home in this tiny town near Perryton.
Ochiltree County Sheriff Joe Hataway said all the families that had been evacuated while the explosives were detonated over the past couple of days returned home Tuesday night, leaving only the final details to be taken care of.
"There's still quite a bit of paperwork to be done, and that will probably take a few days," Hataway said. "But other than that, everything's pretty well wrapped up."
While local law enforcement was taking care of the last details, the man who allegedly caused all the havoc was cooling his heels in the Ochiltree County Jail in Perryton on several new charges.
Daniel Archer, 26, was being held on charges of retaliation and possession of a chemical with intent to manufacture controlled substances, in addition to three earlier counts of possession of prohibited weapons, Hataway said.
Archer is also facing potential jail time in Kansas, where an earlier adjudicated sentence for narcotics charges was revoked based on this weekend's discovery.
Things started getting interesting around Waka on Saturday afternoon when authorities served a search warrant and found numerous explosive devices, materials for making explosives and materials that may have been intended for manufacturing drugs.
Officers backed out of the house and called in bomb experts from Amarillo and the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms.
Authorities evacuated neighboring houses and began detonating the devices.
Hataway said agents blew up seven or eight different homemade explosive devices, along with some dangerous chemicals.
The job was made easier by cold temperatures, which made the chemicals much more stable.
"There were some small explosive devices and some large ones," Hataway said.
Hataway said Archer made a statement, but he could not release the details. He said it appears, however, Archer had an interest in explosives and had been indulging that interest for some time. There was no indication he intended to hurt anyone with the devices, Hataway said.
"My observation is it was just a hobby of his," Hataway said. "But our worries were he would either blow himself up or somebody else. I really think this was a fascination for many years."
Hataway said that although the activities in Waka created a lot of headaches for officials, it also displayed the best side of that town as lots of people came forward with food and amenities.
"I've got a lot of people I need to thank," Hataway said. "Half the residents of Waka were bringing us food and drinks and offering support. I've got to find all of those people and say thank you. They took real good care of us."