FORT WORTH — A federal magistrate in Fort Worth on Tuesday ordered two people to remain in custody without bail who were arrested on Saturday after police fought pipe bombs in the back of the pickup truck they were riding in.
Arlington, Texas, residents Kimberly Al-Homsi, 45, and Yasinul Ansari, 18, will be held on a charge of possession of an unregistered firearm until a federal indictment is issued, U.S. Magistrate Charles Bleil ruled.
Al-Homsi and Ansari, who reportedly is Al-Homsi’s son’s best friend, both wore camouflage fatigues to their hearing.
On Saturday evening a motorist called 911 to say that a weapon had been pointed at him from a passing pickup truck. Arlington police tried to pull over a pickup matching the description the caller gave, but the driver refused to stop and a chase began, police said.
After about a 20-minute chase, the pickup hit a patch of ice, spun out of control and came to a stop on Rosedale beneath Loop 820 in Fort Worth.
Al-Homsi was in the truck, police said, and told officers that there were three pipe bombs in a bag located in the back seat area of her vehicle, according to a criminal complaint.
The bag was safely removed by the Fort Worth Bomb squad.
During an interview with authorities the next day, Al-Homsi admitted to making three pipe bombs in the bedroom of her Arlington apartment in the 2500 block of Ruger Drive, according to the complaint. She also said she purchased PVC pipe, end caps, duck tape, steel epoxy at an Arlington home improvement store and Pyrodex powder, a propellant used for muzzle loaders and black-powder charges, from a sporting goods store.
Al-Homsi's criminal history includes possession of a fake grenade and possession of prohibited weapons, according to Tarrant County criminal court records.
“Obviously there are some issues related to mental health," said Peter Fleury, a federal public offender said shortly after Tuesday’s hearing.
Fleury added that he had just received the complaint Tuesday and that he needed more time study it before making further comments.
Al-Homsi's criminal history includes possession of a fake grenade and possession of prohibited weapons, according to Tarrant County criminal court records.