Senator Calls For Tighter Restrictions on Peroxide

I agree withe Sen. Schumer on this one. Sen. Schumer (D-NY) is calling for a nationwide “awareness” program of sales of peroxide, a chemical widely used in over-the-counter hair dye formulas but also used by terrorists to make explosives.

You may recall, this was one of our suggestions in the recent National Homeland Security Dialogue (QHSR)

A recipe to make a homemade liquid bomb using concentrated peroxide, known as TATP, was found in Zazi’s computer, law enforcement officials say. It was said to be the same recipe used by terrorists in the London transit bombings that killed 56 and wounded more than 700 commuters on July 7, 2005

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Man Injured Handling Explosive Device, Possibly TATP

UPDATE:Benjiman Kuzelka is reportedly in serious condition and will be arrested when he recuperates. His brother, Grey Timothy Kuzelka, 21, was arrested and booked into the county jail. He had been free on bail since Sunday, following an arrest on suspicion of drug possession, sales and transport.
Their mother, Rebecca Kuzelka, 55, was also arrested.

More Details & Suspects Photos

Fox news is reporting that a Southern California man is being investigated after severely injuring his hand while handling an explosive device, possibly while attempting to make TATP.

TATP may have been at the center of an alleged New York City bomb plot targeting subways and trains and also is That is the same type of explosive used in a London subway bombing.

via Source.

From The LA Times

Federal and Riverside County authorities are investigating an explosion overnight at a Lake Elsinore home in which highly powerful explosives were used, according to a law enforcement source.

The blast occurred late Wednesday night at a home in the 30500 block of Audelo that was sometimes used for a day-care operation. A man in the home was seriously injuried, according to the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.

Riverside County sheriff’s detectives, FBI investigators and bomb technicians and agents with the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are taking part in the investigation.

The source said investigators were trying to determine if the explosive found at the home was similar to acetone peroxide, or TATP, the powerful explosive used in the 2007 London subway terrorist bombings. But there is no evidence at this time that the Lake Elsinore case in related to terrorism.

[Updated at Noon: Authorities detonated some of the explosives found in the house this morning. That blast was heard around the neighborhood.

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Readily Available Chemicals Could Pose Terror Risk

Chemicals readily available at beauty-supply stores, pool supply shops, DIY home stores and other venues can be combined to produce explosives strong enough to knock down the structural support of a building, according to experts. My guess is that we will see increased (and needed) regulation of some of the more dangerous products. Although it’s difficult and extremely dangerous to manufacture explosive devices from these compounds, it poses significant risk.

Some may disagree, but if we’re going to regulate cold and allergy medications due to the dangers, how much more so should we regulate the chemicals used to produce TATP. TATP is a powerful explosive and used often by terrorists around the world. A very, very small amount (less than 1/60th of an ounce ), can cause significant damage. I would prefer to have oversight on the sale of these chemicals now, rather than at a time when we look back and ask why we didn’t do this.

Neal Langerman, chief executive officer of Advanced Chemical Safety, a consulting company in San Diego told the Wall Street Journal, “It takes specialized equipment, it takes bench chemistry skill well beyond high school to make this stuff without blowing your head off.”

Najibullah Zazi, the alleged terror suspect arrested last week in Denver is suspected to have made purchases with at least three unnamed associates in Colorado and had a recipe for triacetone triperoxide, an explosive known as TATP and made from hydrogen peroxide, acetone and a strong acid, such as hydrochloric acid.

Depending on the placement of a bomb, the ingredients and volumes allegedly purchased by Mr. Zazi could have made enough TATP “to blow out and bring down the structural support of a building,” said M. Bonner Denton, a chemistry professor at the University of Arizona.

[...]

Still, experts said it would be very difficult to make TATP, especially from the kind of weaker chemicals sold at beauty supply stores. The process requires cooking the chemicals to increase concentration levels. Prosecutors said this week FBI technicians found acetone residues in the vent above the stove-top in an Aurora hotel suite rented by Mr. Zazi.

via Read WSJ Article.