Man denied bond again in bomb threat case

A Christiansburg man charged earlier this month with threatening to bomb his rental unit was again denied bond.

Caleb Elijah Haxton, 20, appeared in Montgomery County Circuit Court on Wednesday to appeal a previous ruling from General District Court in which he was denied bond.

Haxton, who was charged with making threats to bomb the rental unit he was being evicted from, was arrested Nov. 7 after police executed a search warrant at his residence and found a suspicious device.
County Assistant Commonwealth’s Attorney Dean Manor said investigators with the Christiansburg Police Department and Virginia State Police Bomb Squad Unit responded to Alleghany Street about 10 p.m. on Nov. 6 for a report of a bomb threat.

On the porch of the residence in the garbage, officers located a plastic bottle wrapped in duct tape that contained a bluish liquid and had red wire attached, Manor said. Crews took an X-ray of the bottle and discovered it had electrical components.

The device was detonated in the early morning hours of Nov. 7, authorities have said.
Haxton was located at the Rodeway Inn on Bristol Drive.

According to a search warrant filed in Montgomery County Circuit Court, officers seized a circuit board, speaker wire, duct tape, a small memo book and three pieces of notebook paper containing writings and drawings from Haxton’s residence. Manor said a list of ingredients and a diagram of the device was found written on the paper.

Haxton told officers that he was using the device as a scare tactic but thought better of it and threw it away, Manor said. He also told police that he had a history with mental health issues and had thoughts of shooting or stabbing others, according to Manor’s summary of the case.

Haxton’s lawyer, Matt Roberts, asked his client about his mental health issues on Wednesday, and Haxton testified that he had a couple misdemeanors as a minor and had been placed in two different mental institutions. He said he attacked his brother when he was 14 because he was mad at him, and he attempted to hang himself “due to family issues” about two years later.

He said he has been in therapy for bipolar disorder, manic depression, Attention Deficit Disorder and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder.

Roberts told Judge Marcus Long that Haxton would continue therapy if released on bond, but Manor said the prosecution believes Haxton would pose a danger to the community or to himself if released.
Long denied bond. Haxton’s preliminary hearing is scheduled for Jan. 7.

“I know you’ve got some issues, and I wish there was a way we could deal with those,” Long told Haxton. “But, unfortunately, there’s not at this time.”