By Cole Waterman
syracuse.com
STANDISH, Mich. — An Arenac County man is accused of trying to kill several police officers by rigging his home with a booby trap.
The case began on Jan. 19 when a Merritt woman filed a fraud complaint with the Michigan State Police Houghton Lake Post. The woman said her credit card was used to purchase more than $1,500 worth of items from the Walmart in West Branch, according to MSP.
Troopers worked with Walmart’s Loss Prevention and were able to identify Roger A. Broadstone, 67, as a suspect. The purchase was made online using the victim’s credit card and Broadstone was listed as a secondary person to pick up the order.
Surveillance camera footage showed Broadstone picking up the order at Walmart, troopers said.
On Jan. 20, troopers went to Broadstone’s Twining home to interview him. Broadstone refused to come out.
Troopers said he barricaded himself in his house and told them through an open window that they would need a search warrant to come inside.
Troopers then obtained a search warrant and entered Broadstone’s home, finding he had set up a booby trap and made other preparations to harm them. Broadstone resisted as he was being arrested and ended up disarming one trooper of his Taser, said Special 1st Lt. Derrick Carroll. A trooper was also injured, though Carroll declined to provide specifics of the injury.
Troopers also found several items from the Walmart purchase in Broadstone’s home, they added.
Carroll said he could not describe the booby trap.
[READ: From punji pits to pipe bombs: Booby trap awareness for law enforcement]
“It’s an open investigation still,” the lieutenant said. “It’s going to be a big case. I don’t want to give too many details as far as what he had done.”
Broadstone was not injured when arrested, Carroll added.
Broadstone on Jan. 25 was arraigned in Ogemaw County District Court on single counts of illegal use of a financial transaction device and using a computer to commit a crime. On Feb. 1, Broadstone was arraigned in Arenac County District Court on the following 16 charges:
- Five counts of attempted murder
- Four counts of assaulting, resisting, or obstructing police
- One count of assaulting, resisting, or obstructing police causing injury
- One count of disarming a police officer, non-firearm
- One count of attempting to disarm a police officer of a firearm
- One count placing an offensive substance with intent to injure
- One count of arson-preparation to burn a dwelling
- One count of felon in possession of ammunition
- One count malicious destruction of police property.
The arraigning judge set Broadstone’s bond at $1,125,000.
The five attempted murder counts relate to five individual troopers, Carroll added.
Broadstone is to undergo a court-ordered competency evaluation, the date of which is pending.
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