Bombs Placed In Van Headed For Spokane

Two bombs were removed here Wednesday from the van of a man traveling to Spokane.

Robert Ralph, 34, realized something was wrong after he tried to start his van in an alley and it was nearly a minute before the engine roared. Ralph heard a repetitive clicking sound, looked in the back seat and saw several wires attached to a pint-sized can.

Ralph, who was visiting relatives as he traveled from California to Spokane to live with his wife, suspected a bomb and immediately contacted police.

Four hours later, authorities removed two liquid-based bombs, one on the back seat of the van and the other beneath the back axle.

Butte-Silver Bow County Sheriff John McPherson said Wednesday that no one had been arrested, nor had a motive been identified.

“The person who put (the explosives) there planned on them going off - they didn’t,” McPherson said. He said the bomb “wasn’t there to burn the van down, it was there to hurt someone.”

, DataTimes