What to Know
- A homemade explosive was inside a plastic bag in Central Park when it went off Sunday
- The teen who stepped on a rock covering it, setting it off, had part of his leg amputated, relatives said
- Police believe the explosive was created by a hobbyist or experimenter who didn't intend to hurt people
The explosive compound that blew off the foot of a college student in Central Park over the July 4th weekend contained products and chemicals readily found in hardware stores, a senior law enforcement official tells NBC 4 New York.
Investigators still believe the person who left behind the homemade explosive inside a plastic bag was experimenting with chemical mixtures to make a small explosion, the official said.
When the bag failed to detonate, the person left behind the volatile mixture of chemicals in the park. There was no sign of any triggering mechanism, and authorities don't believe the device was designed to intentionally hurt people.
Police previously said they believe it was created by "an explosive hobbyist or experimenter" who had some knowledge of chemistry.
The victim, identified by relatives as 19-year-old Connor Golden, a University of Miami student from Fairfax County, Virginia, was walking in the park with two friends when he stepped on a rock covering the explosive.
Breaking. Loud boom in Central Park. Man suffers major injury to leg. #nbc4ny pic.twitter.com/qI6reOjvuN
— Lori Bordonaro (@Lori4NY) July 3, 2016
The teen's grandparents told NBC 4 Washington that doctors had amputated his leg below the knee. An official said he underwent surgery at Bellevue Hospital.
Friends of Golden have started an online fundraiser for him as he remains in the New York City hospital. The GoFundMe page describes him as a talented sound technician studying music engineering at the University of Miami. It says he's also an outdoors enthusiast and an Eagle Scout.
