Person of interest identified in Nashville Christmas explosion
A person of interest has been identified in connection with the Christmas day explosion in Nashville, a law enforcement source confirmed Saturday.
Investigators with the FBI, ATF and the Metro Nashville Police Department converged to the 100 block of Bakertown Road in Antioch just before 11 a.m.
Local and federal agents have been in an out of a duplex for “court authorized activity” following information from the investigation, according to Darrell DeBusk, an FBI public affairs officer.
DeBusk said no arrest has been made.
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No one was inside the home, according to FBI Special Agent Jason Pack, who said the agency's evidence response team entered the home at about 2:30 p.m. for a court approved search.
Neighbors told The Tennessean an RV similar to the one in the explosion was parked at the home within the last two weeks.
Authorities declined to comment on the activity in Antioch during an afternoon update.
The early morning explosion caused by a bomb in a parked RV in downtown's historic Second Avenue left destruction for several blocks — strewing evidence, along with debris, rubble and shattered glass in the roads.
Fires left the trees and the facades of the Victorian-era brick buildings in the area charred and blacken as water flooded inside businesses and home after sprinkler systems were set off by the blast.
Several blocks surrounding the bombing site remained locked down Saturday as authorities continue to investigate the crime scene, where three people were injured and where what police believe to be human remains were found.
The events Friday began when witnesses heard gun fire in the neighborhood. A report of shots fired came was at 5:30 a.m.
But when officers responded to the area of Second Avenue and Commerce Street before 6 a.m., they saw no evidence of any shooting. Instead, they noticed a suspicious RV parked outside an AT&T building.
Officers and witnesses heard a recording from the RV giving a dire warning: “Evacuate now. There is a bomb. A bomb is in this vehicle and will explode."
At least six Nashville police officers acted quickly to start evacuating people from nearby buildings after alerting the department's hazardous devices unit.
A 15-minute countdown began to broadcast with the looped message playing in between. After the countdown was over, the message began to play again until around 6:30 a.m., when police said a "significant explosion" happened as the bomb squad was en route.
Police and firefighters converged to the area about 6:45 a.m. and began taping off the scene. Shortly after, federal and state agencies arrived with the FBI taking the lead on the case.
