Bomb squad finds possible devices in Shelby County house

SHELBY COUNTY, Tenn. — Bomb technicians were sent to a house in the Raleigh-Bartlett area Friday after authorities say four possible explosive devices were found.

The Shelby County Sheriff’s office said the bomb technicians were sent around noon to a house in the 5600 block of Rensslaer, near Old Brownsville Road.

Wayne Carrozza, who made the call to the sheriff’s office, said he was helping clean out the home of a man who died some time ago, when he and a friend found a box of ammunition — along with something else.

“He asked if I could get rid of the ammunition for him and I said I could,” Carrozza said. “The thing that I was uncomfortable with, is that it contained four cylinders that had fuses that were wrapped with gaffer’s tape.”

As a Navy veteran and an 11-year employee at a gun range, Carrozza said he knew better than to pick up the device.

He alerted authorities and soon after, Shelby County’s bomb squad showed up to investigate.

Deputies blocked off the street and neighbors were locked in their houses as four black bags could be seen in the street. Neighbors say the situation was unreal to watch.

“I was kind of terrified by it, but then I was saying if the bomb team was still standing there, then I guess I was safe, too,” neighbor Anita Young said.

Carrozza says that while the situation was alarming, it served as a lesson for others that if you see something and say something, you’ll get results.

“I really did not think it was going to get quite that big and take that long,” he said. “If this was something worse I would have been very pleased in the way they executed it.”

There was no word late Friday night from the Shelby County Sheriff’s Office on whether the devices may have been bombs.

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