A traffic stop in Yucca Valley resulted in an arrest of a Joshua Tree man who deputies say was found to be in possession of a firework modified into
a small bomb. According to a Sheriff’s report, about 1:20 a.m. Wednesday morning, a deputy stopped a vehicle near Highway 62 and Old Woman Springs Road for not having vehicle tags. A records check of the driver, identified as Jeffrey Thomas, 31, found that he was on parole. During a search of the vehicle, the deputy found a clear plastic container containing methamphetamine. The deputy also found an M-80 firework that had been modified with numerous nails sticking out of it to act as shrapnel when it exploded. Jeffrey Thomas was arrested for investigation of being in possession of an explosive device, and for possession of drug paraphernalia, booked into the West Valley Detention Center, with his bail set at $525,000.
