WWII hand grenade removed from Indian River County condo by bomb disposal unit

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY −An inactive, WWII-era hand grenade was taken from a condo residence by a Sheriff's Office bomb disposal unit earlier this week, a law enforcement official said.

The rusty, "definitely old," pineapple-style hand grenade was found inside a vacant Vista Plantation golf club condominium and reported by a cleaning crew member to the Indian River County Sheriff's Office just after 2 p.m. Wednesday, said a sheriff's spokesperson.

Deputies contacted St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office, which Sgt. Kevin Jaworski said partners with Indian River County Sheriff's Office for use of its "bomb squad."

"They came up and determined that the grenade was a training grenade (and) the explosives portion was hollowed out, but, regardless, they collected it for safekeeping," said Jaworski. "At first glance it looks to be real..."

During the removal of the device a portion of the complex was evacuated, but Jaworski said he was unsure how many units total.

A cleaning crew was scheduled to clean the vacant unit in the complex off 66th Avenue and State Road 60 and found the grenade, which was thought to possibly belong to the previous tenant.

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Corey Arwood is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm and Treasure Coast Newspapers. Follow @coreyarwood on X, email corey.arwood@tcpalm.com or call 772-978-2246 .

This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: WWII hand grenade removed from Indian River County condo by bomb disposal unit