It started with a rejection and ended in a fiery explosion. A Michigan teen, who was angry after being turned down by a girl he had only known for a few days, reportedly broke into her family’s home and set off an explosive.
The act of violence put the lives of seven people inside the house at risk, including three young children.
Now, at just 17 years old, the teen is facing adult charges that could put him behind bars for decades.
A Michigan teen set off explosives in the home of a girl who rejected him
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Police reports detail that the alleged culprit, teenager Jonathan Michael Brady, broke into a Michigan family’s home and placed an explosive device in it. The reports suggest that the reason behind the arson was rejection.
Earlier that same night, a female cousin living in the house refused to go out with Brady, which angered him.
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The family of seven in the home consisted of Dalvon Lee, his son, his son’s mother and grandmother, along with a 2-month-old, a cousin, and her 9-month-old child. Luckily, the family managed to escape, hopping over a back fence to safety with no harm.
A family of seven was inside the house at the time of the fire
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Speaking to WXYZ Detroit, Dalvon Lee, the father of said house in Mount Clemens, said, “This is a kid ruining his life over a girl he met five days ago.” According to police reports, the incident happened around 3 AM, on April 10. At the time, Lee was at home with his 9-month-old son when he heard a “big old boom.”
“It sounded literally like someone threw an M-80 in there,” he said. “Just.. it blew up. When I went downstairs, first it was like a little fire. It wasn’t nothing big.” However, the house fire quickly spread, eventually covering the entire home.
“You just see the whole front of [the house] just burst into flames,” Lee shared, saying that “it was crazy.”
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The father of the house said the explosives went off near the room where the babies were sleeping
According to Lee, the explosive detonated just outside the room where the babies were sleeping. “My children were so terrified; they thought someone was shooting and breaking into the house,” Lee recounted.
The children ran and hid in the basement, but Lee managed to reach them in time to explain that it was actually a fire.
“My main concern was making sure my son was good and everybody was out the house,” Lee added.
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The teen who is currently in the juvenile center will be tried as an adult
Following the fire, arson investigators quickly saw that it had been set intentionally. Just five days later, the Macomb County Prosecutor’s Office had taken Brady into custody, who was accused of breaking into the home and setting the explosive.
Brady is currently being held at the Juvenile Justice Center, but prosecutors have opted to charge him as an adult. He faces one count each of home invasion, arson, placing explosives near a property, and possessing bombs with unlawful intent, all of which carry a maximum sentence of up to 20 years behind bars.
According to the Detroit News, He was charged as an adult on April 17 and is being held on a $500,000 bond.
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The prosecutor stated the teen’s “grievous conduct” led to him being charged as an adult
Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido said, “I did not reach the decision to charge Mr. Brady as an adult lightly,” Macomb County Prosecutor Peter J. Lucido said in a statement. “The gravity of this crime plus the need to seek justice for the victims and protect the public required this solemn action,” he said.
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“When I served in the Michigan Senate, I authored and passed the legislation that ended the prosecutorial practice of automatically charging 17-year-olds as adults to provide more discretion and fairness in the justice system,” Lucido added.
“I believe in measured justice and giving second chances to young people. But, in this case, Mr. Brady’s alleged grievous conduct requires me to charge him as an adult,” he concluded.