Westminster : Dynamite Thrown at Motel Fails to Explode

A stick of dynamite thrown early Tuesday morning at a motel window shattered the glass and scared the couple inside but failed to explode, a Sheriff’s Department spokesman said.

The fuse apparently went out after the explosive hit the ground-floor window and dropped harmlessly outside the room at the Ha’Penny Inn, which is at McFadden Avenue and Beach Boulevard in a small unincorporated area of the county, Lt. Richard J. Olson said.

The man and woman in the room, whom police declined to identify, were not injured in the 2 a.m. incident, Olson said. Sheriff’s deputies from the department’s bomb squad were called to the motel and used a remote-controlled robot to retrieve the dynamite.

Dan Leroy Dinsmore, 49, of Westminster was arrested by sheriff’s deputies later in the day on suspicion of attempted murder and possession of a destructive device. Officials said Dinsmore was a former boyfriend of the woman in the motel room. Bail was set at $250,000.

Olson said investigators believe others may have been involved in the attack, but he declined to elaborate.