FBI Investigates After Pipe Bomb Blows Up Mailbox

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PARKER COUNTY (CBSDFW.COM) - A powerful blast destroyed a stone and concrete mailbox in southwest Parker County north of Lipan. It sent heavy stones flying and the mailbox landed in a neighbor's field 30 yards away. When one of the homeowners first saw it, he thought someone had wrapped a chain around it and tried to pull it over with a pick up.

"And then as I looked at it a little more, you could tell damage had been done to the top which I thought was a little odd," said Ty Blackburn who lives in the home with his mother. "So when inspecting it, I found pieces of lead pipe which, from what I've seen on TV shows, looks pretty similar to a pipe bomb."

Pieces of lead pipe were strewn around the base of the mailbox. Blackburn called the sheriff's office thinking a destroyed mailbox would not garner much attention. But the Parker County sheriff said he is very concerned it was a serious bomb that could have had deadly results.

"This is crazy!" Blackburn exclaimed. "Somebody tried to blow up my mailbox with a pipe bomb! I don't know if it was targeting me or my mom."

But the Parker County sheriff said he doesn't have a suspect or a motive for the bombing.

"It is kind of scary not knowing what the motive was," Blackburn said.

The FBI sent a forensics team to scour the area for bomb fragments and clues. The Blackburns hope the bomber is caught before someone is hurt or killed.

"Obviously, a pipe bomb could do some serious damage," Blackburn said. "You, know they could have put it at my house or in my window."

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