Police arrested Larry Hoagland, 48, early Tuesday morning, in connection with the pipe bomb that nearly killed his wife and shook the Rancho San Diego Neighborhood.
The Sheriff's Department says investigators from multiple agencies uncovered evidence linking Mr. Hoagland to the bombing attempt on his wife's life, but they are not releasing the information to the public.
Connie Hoagland, 52, a worker at a residential day care facility in Rancho San Diego, was seriously injured after she got into her truck Thursday afternoon, started the engine and the pipe bomb exploded.
Neighbors heard a “boom” around 4.15 p.m. on the 12000 block of Via Hacienda. Residents living in two-dozen homes on the street were forced to evacuate.
Kristin Taffie lives eight houses away from where it happened.
“I was right on the corner hanging out with the kids and all of a sudden we just heard this huge boom,” Taffie said. “It was extremely loud. You would have thought it was something like a bomb.”
"I don't know why they would be targeted. Really nice people, always friendly, always having family barbecues,” said the victim’s neighbor Brandi Smith. “I can't imagine why anyone would do anything to her, she's a really nice lady.”
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Another a pipe bomb was recently found near the victim's home, investigators said. It’s not clear if the incidents are related.
Investigators took the truck to the crime lab where they went over it piece by piece to determine what kind of a pipe bomb was attached to the car.
Mrs. Hoagland was taken to the UCSD Burn Center, where she was rushed into surgery and treated for severe burns.
Court records show the Hoaglands have filed for bankruptcy, and a hearing in that case was held in federal court on Wednesday.
Court documents show Larry Hoagland is part owner of a local photography business.
The couple is $500,000 in debt and is trying to avoid foreclosure on their Rolando home, according to the documents.
Hoagland was arrested just after midnight on Hope Street in La Mesa, according to police.
