Lincoln Police were called Thursday morning to check the field south of NW 12th and Cornhusker, along the northside of Oak Creek for trespassers and encountered a potentially explosive situation.
LPD’s Erika Thomas says when officers arrived around 8:30 a.m. they contacted 63-year-old Lynn Cavanaugh sleeping in a tent. “He was found in possession of a stolen E-bike with a makeshift battery hot wired to the bike,” Thomas says. Cavanaugh complained of weakness and requested to be taken to the hospital by LFR.
Thomas says during this time Cavanaugh asked an officer to carry his backpack and gave consent to search it. “Inside, officers found two baggies of suspected crystal meth and one baggie with a
marijuana bud. They also found a cylindrical tube with silver tape on both ends and a fuse coming out of the side.”
The LFR Hazardous Device Team was called and determined the device had almost 431 times the legal weight allowed of powder inside. It was confirmed to be an explosive device. After being released from the hospital, Cavanaugh was taken to the Lancaster County Jail and booked for possession of a controlled substance and possession of explosives.
He was cited and released for criminal trespass and theft by receiving.