Man Charged In Bomb Incident At Good Samaritan Hospital

PUYALLUP, WA - A man who blew off his hand with a homemade explosive - which he allegedly detonated near his ex-girlfriend's home - was charged on Wednesday in Pierce County with unlawful possession of an explosive device.

In early January, Chase Beattie, 18, sought treatment for his hand at Good Samaritan Hospital. That touched off an hours-long emergency at the hospital, which was partially evacuated as police, FBI, and Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms agents investigated Beattie's pickup truck.

According to the Tacoma News-Tribune, Beattie has previous involvement with ex-girlfriends and explosives. In November 2014, he was questioned about a pipe bomb that went off in an ex's driveway, the paper reported; another ex-girlfriend's car was damaged in November 2016 by an explosive.

The Good Samaritan incident began Jan. 8 just after 4 a.m. Beattie and a 22-year-old friend arrived at the hospital seeking treatment for injuries related to an explosion. Beattie's injuries were so severe he had to be treated at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The 22-year-old was treated at Good Samaritan and released.

Meanwhile, the pickup truck the men arrived in drew suspicion because there appeared to be a bomb in it. Police closed down the main entrance of the hospital and evacuated staff. After several hours, police determined that the device in the truck had already exploded, likely before the truck was driven to the hospital.

Police were later able to determine that the device had exploded near Beattie's ex-girlfriend's house along the 700 block of 13th Street Southwest.

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