A 13-year-old Carson City boy admitted Thursday he tried to light a homemade bomb on a school bus full of students.
"I brought a bottle filled with liquid onto the bus and attempted to light it, but it didn't light. If I did light it I was going to throw it out as soon as it did," the boy told a juvenile magistrate as he pleaded guilty to a charge of disorderly conduct.
On Oct. 13, the boy was riding home from Carson Middle School on a district school bus when he allegedly pulled out the bottle containing liquid and a cloth wick and a lighter.
As some students egged the boy on to light it, three girls forced him to stop and reported the incident.
The girls were commended by Sheriff Kenny Furlong for their actions.
According to an Associated Press story, a charge of attempted possession of an incendiary device was dropped by the Carson City District Attorney's Office. The charge had already been reduced from a possession charge after deputies didn't test the device before destroying it.
"The evidence was deemed to be flammable," Furlong said Thursday. "We had no way to store it and the officer did destroy it. It was an error on our side and we've taken actions to prevent that from happening in the future."
District Attorney Noel Waters, confirmed evidence was destroyed and that the district attorney's office had to come up with another charge. The boy claimed the liquid was brake fluid, but there was no way to test it, he said.
The name of the boy is being withheld because of his age.
Contact F.T. Norton at ftnorton@nevadaappeal.com or 881-1213.