Investigators: Washington man arrested for revenge bombing plot

MOSES LAKE, Wash. -- Police say a 39-year-old Moses Lake man was arrested after a suspected homemade explosive device was discovered in his car during a traffic stop.

According to the Grant County Sheriff's Office, the suspect was pulled over Thursday afternoon for a minor traffic violation near an entrance to a silicon plant on Road N-Northeast.

During the stop, the deputy spotted a suspicious device in the back seat. The Washington State Patrol bomb squad was called to the scene and cleared the scene hours later, about 11 p.m.

On Friday, a judge found probable cause to hold the suspect on $100,000 bail for investigation of second-degree burglary and attempted threats to bomb.

According to probable cause documents:

The suspect worked as a chemical driver for Nutrien Ag Solutions through 2015. He believed the company did not have safe workplace practices and his exposure to chemicals may have contributed to his daughter's birth defects.

According to the documents, the suspect said he took fertilizer, built a mortar and intended to create an explosive device:

"He said he intended to build an explosive device, enter the Nutrien Ag Solutions Moses Lake plant with the device, then drive to the Nutrien Ag Solutions offices in Pasco to inform the management there about how he had taken the materials from the Moses Lake plant and 'explain how dangerous and easy it would be for someone who wanted to do some damage to succeed.'"

When asked by investigators what he thought the bomb would do, the suspect allegedly said: "Ever heard of Timothy McVeigh?"