Hunter
11/05/21
An Iowa City man was taken into custody after a search warrant found stolen weapons and two homemade explosive devices.
Officers executed a search warrant Tuesday morning at the Mossy Glen Court residence of 19-year-old Demtrick Byars, referencing multiple firearms and shooting-related incidents in the Iowa City and Coralville area.
Detectives reportedly located two firearms in the man’s bedroom; a Smith and Wesson pistol and a Savage 22 caliber rifle. The rifle serial number had been obliterated from the weapon, and Byars, who was present during the search warrant, was interviewed. Under Miranda, he admitted to possession of the rifle, and said he got the gun from an unnamed associate and believed the gun to be stolen.
Byars also allegedly had two homemade explosive devices in his residence that were examined by a Johnson County Bomb Squad technician. One was tennis ball or similar type of ball, wrapped in duct tape with a fuse protruding. It was believed the ball contained explosive materials like fireworks or match heads.
The other device consisted of two glass alcohol bottles duct taped to consumer-grade fireworks designed to be shot from a tube. The combination of the items would make it a fragmenting explosive device with glass behind it. The design also indicated that the bottles could be filled with gasoline and make a Molotov cocktail-like device, intended to destroy property and harm those in its vicinity.
Byars also reportedly had a digital scale, packaging materials, and a bag of “Flaming Hot” THC edibles. A search of his cellphone through the search warrant discovered many photos of drugs and drug usage.
Byars was arrested Thursday and charged with two counts of possession of an incendiary or explosive device, trafficking in stolen weapons, and a controlled substance violation. He faces a prison sentence of up to fifteen years if convicted.