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Man held in Dix Hills mailbox bombing

BY CHRISTINA HERNANDEZ | christina.hernandez@newsday.com

8:36 PM EDT, August 29, 2008

A South Huntington man was arrested Thursday night in connection with a pipe bomb explosion hours earlier in a Dix Hills mailbox, Suffolk police said Friday.

Julian Townsend, 31, of 9 Fenwood Rd., charged with felony criminal mischief, was held on $10,000 bail after his arraignment Friday, police said.

About 5:40 p.m. Thursday, residents on Dix Hills Court reported hearing a loud explosion and found the contents of a resident's mailbox strewn throughout the street, said Suffolk Det. Sgt. George White.

Investigators determined a small pipe bomb was ignited in the mailbox. Townsend was arrested at 10 p.m. Thursday. Police are investigating the incident to determine whether there is a connection with the pipe bomb explosion in a Laurel Hollow mailbox Thursday afternoon, White said.