A Florida man was arrested after allegedly hiding radio-controlled explosive devices in the restrooms of a casino, local authorities said.
Bryan Robert Eckley, 46, of Tampa, has been charged with two counts of making, possessing, throwing, projecting, placing or discharging a destructive device, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement announced Thursday.
“Eckley did everything he could to hide from law enforcement,” the department’s Tampa Bay Special Agent in Charge Mark Brutnell said in a news release. “But thanks to the exceptional work of this investigative and forensic team, he will be held accountable for his actions.”
Eckley is currently being represented by the Hillsborough County Public Defender’s Office. USA TODAY contacted the office on Friday but has not received a response.
Authorities did not name which of Tampa’s casinos where the explosives were hidden.
How was Bryan Eckley identified?
The investigation into Eckley began on Sept. 30 in Tampa after someone hid two of the radio-controlled explosives inside two restrooms in a local casino, according to the department. Employees found the devices before they caused any damage, the agency added.
Several leads helped investigators narrow down the suspect as a male driving a white Ford Explorer. Interviews, surveillance and analytical work led to them identifying Eckley, according to the agency.
Days before planting the explosive devices in September, Eckley was arrested by the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office in an unrelated aggravated assault with a firearm case, the agency said. Forensic analysts tied evidence from that case to the explosives, according to the release.
Eckley was arrested on Wednesday and booked into the Hillsborough County Jail. He does not currently have a bond and his pretrial detention hearing is scheduled for Nov. 5, inmate and court records show.
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