MESA, AZ — Two men are being held on felony charges after police say one of them threw a homemade explosive at an occupied Mesa police patrol car early Thursday, damaging the vehicle and sending the officer inside to the hospital to be checked.
Christopher Patrick Byassee, 57, faces eight felony counts, including aggravated assault on a first responder and arson of an occupied structure. Christopher David Jones, 55, faces two counts: arson of an occupied structure and criminal damage.
Both men made their initial court appearances Friday morning before Commissioner Elizabeth Campbell. Byassee is being held on a $500,000 secured bond and Jones on a $200,000 secured bond.
Police say Byassee threw the device and Jones stood beside him while he did.
What police say happened
The explosion happened about 6:29 a.m. Thursday near Sunland Avenue and 96th Street, according to court documents.
A Mesa officer was sitting in a marked patrol car with its emergency lights on and windows down while helping with an unrelated shots-fired investigation, police said.
Neither man was connected to that call.
The device went off near the patrol car's rear tire on the driver's side, and the officer drove away to find cover. The blast blew off the car's gas door, damaged a taillight and left burn marks and residue on the vehicle, according to police, who estimate the damage at more than $2,000.
The officer, who is not named in court documents, went to a hospital to be checked after reporting ringing in his ears.
Caught on camera
A neighbor's security camera recorded two men on the patio of a home in the 900 block of South 96th Street, police said. In the video, one man lights something that appears to be burning and throws it toward the patrol car, where it rolls up to the vehicle. The two men walk back inside, and the device explodes.
Police said the flash was bright enough to switch the camera from night vision to day mode.
Officers ordered everyone out of the home, and three men came out. Police ruled out the homeowner, who has limited mobility and uses a walker, because he did not match the men in the video. Footage showed no one else came or went before officers arrived, according to court documents.
The bomb squad confirmed an improvised explosive device had gone off, and small pieces of cardboard were scattered around the blast area. Officers serving a search warrant at the home found lighters and a butane torch, police said.
One threw, one shielded, police say
Police say Byassee, the taller of the two men, is the one seen throwing the device in the video.
Jones, who spoke with police after being read his Miranda rights, told officers he was on the patio when he saw Byassee holding a butane torch and something lit, which Jones thought was a firework. He said he then saw Byassee throw it over his shoulder and followed him back inside, according to court documents.
Police describe Jones as an accomplice, saying the video appears to show him using his body to hide Byassee from the officer's view while Byassee lit and threw the device.
Byassee first told police he didn't know what the explosion was, then asked for a lawyer, according to court documents.
The arson charge against both men applies because police are treating the occupied patrol car as a structure. It is a Class 2 felony, the most serious of the counts either man faces.
Guns found in locked bedroom
Officers also found several guns in a back bedroom secured with a keypad lock, according to court documents. The homeowner told police the room was Byassee's. One of the guns, a shotgun, had a damaged or altered serial number, police said.
Byassee has prior convictions for burglary, stalking and aggravated harassment, and the court form also indicates a prior failure to appear. His home address is listed as unknown.
In addition to the assault and arson counts, Byassee is charged with possession of a prohibited weapon, criminal damage, disorderly conduct with a weapon, depositing explosives and two counts of weapons possession by a prohibited person.
As conditions of his release, Byassee may not have weapons, lighters or torches and may not contact Jones.
Jones' prior arrests and convictions are listed as unknown in court documents.
What's next
Both men were appointed public defenders. Each is scheduled for a status conference Nov. 19 and a preliminary hearing Nov. 23 at the South Court Tower.
The men have separate case numbers, and their cases have not been joined.
