Man accused of having explosive device, shotguns in shopping cart
Ryan Shiner
COLUMBIA, Mo. (KMIZ)
A Marshall man was charged with several felonies in Saline County on Tuesday after he was found with several weapons in a shopping cart.
John Hooper was charged with first-degree assault, armed criminal action, illegally having an illegal weapon, drug possession and unlawful use of a weapon. He is being held at the Saline County Jail without bond and has a hearing set for 10:30 a.m. Wednesday.
Court documents say that Marshall police were called to the 200 block of East Eastwood Street for reports of a man with a shopping cart filled with shotguns knocking on doors. Police saw a shotgun in the cart and Hooper allegedly said there were two guns, the probable cause statement says.
Police removed the guns and Hooper tried to take them back, the statement says. A round from one of the guns was fired into the ground during the struggle, the statement says. Hooper allegedly struggled while police tried to arrest him, according to court documents. Police used a Taser and eventually arrested him, police wrote.
Hooper was allegedly also found with methamphetamine residue and ammunition. Police then allegedly saw a homemade explosive device and a homemade incendiary device.
“The homemade explosive device was made from a plastic pink limeade container, which contained ammunition powder, construction nails, construction screws, shards of broken glass, BB ammunition and an artillery shell,” the statement says. “The homemade incendiary device was made from a glass mason jar wrapped with a gasoline soaked sock. The glass mason jar contained gasoline and an artillery shell.”
A social media post from the Marshall Police Department says that the department, the FBI and Missouri State Highway served a warrant at Hooper’s home. MPD wrote that it found baggies of meth, “epi-pens prescribed to the Marshall Public Schools, drug paraphernalia, multiple pieces of copper believed to be taken from Eastwood Elementary School, a Lenovo computer owned by Marshall Public Schools, NEC Projector belonging to the Marshall Public Schools, multiple wi-fi antennas and two incendiary devises made of glass fuel bottles.”