No bond for man with machete, bombs in truck
ORMOND BEACH, Fla. (FOX 35 Orlando) - Damon Gause Jr. will remain in the Volusia County Jail after police say they found him with homemade explosives along an Ormond Beach Highway.
A judge Thursday issuing no bond on four felony counts to Gause, including three for making and possessing a destructive device and one for possession of a weapon as a felon.
An officer for the Ormond Beach Police Department found a truck, the department says belongs to Gause, parked in an empty lot along US Highway 1 on Wednesday afternoon. The officer identified the truck as suspicious and police say he waited near-by to see if anyone would return.
Eventually, according to police reports, Gause was observed walking down the side of the highway ditch with a machete in-hand. When the officer confronted Gause, who is listed as living in Bunnell, they said he claimed to be checking out the wooded plot of land that does have a for sale sign posted on it.
"He was all dirty and filthy,” said Ormond Beach Police Public Officer Keith Walker. "Mr. Gause says he was walking the property line to see if he was thinking about buying the property there."
Walker said the officer doubted Gause’s story and decided to call in a drug sniffing K9 after he discovered that Gause had a prior arrest in Daytona Beach for possession of methamphetamine and trespassing; on the day after Christmas.
That’s when officers said the dog hit on something else in Gause’s truck.
"A homemade explosive device in the front seat and then he found two more in the bed of the truck,” said Walker.
Walker said the devices were not large, but still could have caused damage.
He said more problematic: they still don’t know why Gause had the explosives.
"Did he have an intention to hurt somebody or is he just somebody who is fascinated with these things?” said Walker.
The Volusia County Bomb Squad was called in to take care of the explosives; detonating at least one in the dirt Walker said.
Officers continued to search the truck and the woods along the highway to assure no more explosives were left behind.
According to Daytona Beach Police, Gause also had an arrest last month for failure to appear on the December charges. When deciding to hold him without bond, the judge cited the outstanding case as a reason to keep Gause in jail.