Tifton, GA –  A joint investigation by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI), Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATF), and the Tift County Sheriff’s Office has led to the arrest of a Tifton man for manufacture/possession of explosive devices.

On Tuesday, August 29, 2017, the GBI’s Bomb Disposal Unit was requested by the Tifton Police Department to assist with a post blast investigation. During the early morning hours of Sunday, August 27, 2017, a destructive device was placed on an unoccupied vehicle parked in the employee’s parking lot at Tift Regional Medical Center.  The device was” timed “and subsequently detonated causing moderate damage to the vehicle. No one was injured during the incident.

Further investigation determined that this incident was related to three other similar cases that occurred in the area.

On December 24, 2015, a destructive device detonated on the hood of an unoccupied vehicle that was also located in the Tift Regional Medical Center parking lot.  Another device exploded on the door of an occupied apartment in Tifton on August 25, 2016.  A fourth device detonated on August 27, 2017, inside a mailbox located at a residence in Tift County.  None of the incidents resulted in injuries.

The multi-agency investigation resulted in the arrest of Douglas Kennedy, 72, of 15 Red Tip Road in Tifton. A search of Kennedy’s residence found a large amount of explosives and bomb making material.

Kennedy was charged with four counts of manufacture/possession of an explosive device, four counts of criminal damage to property, one count of aggravated assault, and two counts of possession of a firearm by a convicted felon.  Kennedy was booked into the Tift County Jail.

The investigation is ongoing and additional charges are expected. Anyone with information concerning the case is asked to call the GBI office in Sylvester at 229-777-2080 or the Tift County Sheriff’s Office at (229) 388-6020.

Bahan Rich | Public Affairs | 404/270-8832