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October 26, 2012 4:52 PM

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Dean Weeks, Mass. firefighter, accused of booby trapping ex-wife's dryer to explode

By: Casey Glynn
Topics: Daily Blotter

Dean Weeks, right, pleaded not guilty Thursday, Oct. 25, to charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon.

/ CBS Boston

(CBS/WBZ) CLINTON - Police say a Massachusetts firefighter who was supposed to fix his ex-wife's dryer as part of a divorce settlement, instead booby trapped it to explode as soon as she turned it on.

According to CBS Boston, Dean Weeks on Thursday pleaded not guilty to charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon in connection to the August blast that left his wife with severe burns on her legs.

The Coulter Press reports that Weeks was arraigned in Worcester Superior Court and released on his own recognizance.

Doreen Weeks says she turned on the dryer after her ex-husband, a veteran Clinton firefighter, texted her and told her to test it, the station reports. She says she heard "tick, tick and then boom."

The explosion that followed reportedly blew her small dog out of the second floor window and left Weeks with burns severe enough that she was taken away in an ambulance.

Weeks says her ex-husband rigged the trap to get rid of her and claim the house for himself, CBS Boston reports. Dean was supposed to fix the broken dryer as part of a divorce settlement reached in August.

Police say Weeks showed up at the scene and tried to threaten his ex-wife into staying silent about the incident, CBS Boston reports. Two men that work with Weeks at his side business also told police he told them to lie if questioned about the explosion, according to police.

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by aubfmet October 28, 2012 8:07 PM EDT

A little cheaper to buy a new dryer.

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by soulfeather October 29, 2012 4:30 PM EDT: Totally. Who fixes a broken hair dryer? And if I was divorcing someone, I sure wouldn't ask them to fix anything for me. Weird "settlement" to fix a hair dryer.


by soulfeather October 29, 2012 4:32 PM EDT: Duh I said hair dryer, meant clothes dryer.

by GeorgeJones7 October 28, 2012 9:59 AM EDT

So far nobody has offered any proof that he did anything, other than the word of the other half in a bitter divorce. She very well could have rigged it herself or had someone else rig it after the husband worked on it, in order to give the impression that he was trying to kill her. I find it a bit suspicious that it conveniently only burned her legs, and other than the open description that she was burned "severely enough to be taken away by ambulance", it doesn't describe the extent of her injuries. Unless theres more to the story than the media is telling us, I'm not convinced that the scheming was really by the husband.

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by KPeters_from_UK October 28, 2012 2:30 PM EDT: Oh PLEEEEEEZE!!!

You don't find it one bit weird that he asked his work pals to lie to the police? That doesn't raise any freakin red flags for you? WOW! Man, you are so damn bitter yourself you can't even see how weird this Dean guy really is. Perhaps you went through a nasty divorce yourself there bud.


by skeezix06 October 28, 2012 2:33 PM EDT: Most clothes dryers don't extend above the waist. If he put the bomb in the drum, she would have noticed so I'm not surprised her legs took most of the blast. And did you notice the last sentence where he told his co-workers to lie to the police?


by lillyhorton October 29, 2012 2:05 AM EDT: George, I agree with you. It seems very odd that he was required to fix the dryer rather than replace the dryer. If she in fact has MS there is reason to believe she attempted suiside and tried to blame him. Firefighters are not ignorant. I am sure he could have come up with a better plan that wouldn't seem so obvious. Let me remind people of the woman who splashed chemicals on her face and blamed a man. Some people do drastic things to be victims and gain sympathy. I am sure the judge treated her as just another divorce case which left her feeling hurt. She didn't get the satisfaction of devistating her EX.


by prm777 October 29, 2012 1:18 PM EDT: I've heard some crazy theories, but suggesting that this woman would try to frame her husband by rigging her own dryer to explode and seriously burn (potentially kill) her, is WAY OUT THERE! Besides, this guy showed up at the scene (probably hoping she had been killed) to then try to coerce her into being quiet about the whole thing, and asked his co-workers to lie for him. These sound like the actions and behaviors of someone who has something to hide to me.

by caligirlabc October 27, 2012 8:49 PM EDT

Too bad for her, but more importantly (to me)...How is the little dog?

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by prm777 October 29, 2012 1:21 PM EDT: The dog's name has been changed to "Sparky". He was a regular chihuahua, but is now a hairless, Mexican chihuahua.


by FormerUSMCSergeant October 27, 2012 7:54 PM EDT: She might be a megabitchasaurus, but he's definitely a scumbag.; Reply to this comment


by rwsmith29456 October 27, 2012 3:30 PM EDT: Not the brightest bulb in the chandelier. Maybe he thought he could get by with justifiable homicide.; Reply to this comment

by pedalit October 27, 2012 11:52 AM EDT

how's the dog doing?

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by CarolStrick October 27, 2012 6:54 PM EDT: I found an article that said the dog survived.

This article also doesn't mention that the ex-wife has MS, which I think is a significant fact that should have been included.

by taxed_in_ct October 26, 2012 10:55 PM EDT

The way divorce courts treat men or women respectively may generate heated heated discussions about who gets treated worse and who feels justified in seeking revenge, but at the end of the day what this guy did was wrong. End of discussion. He may not like the deal he got but trying to kill his wife was less than intelligent because getting away with murder is pretty hard these days and he still doesn't have the house he wanted back. Murder is never an answer.

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by Montana5 October 27, 2012 9:18 AM EDT: Duh, ya think?


by skeezix06 October 26, 2012 9:22 PM EDT: I don't think he deserves to be a firefighter any more.; Reply to this comment

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