On Jan. 18, The Tribune received a press release from the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office that on Jan. 2, deputies initiated an investigation after receiving information of a possible explosive device at a residence north of Snowflake on Park Lane. Deputies arrived and spoke with Mark Blake, 61, of Snowflake. Mark advised the deputies that he had a live grenade in his RV and if deputies took the grenade, he would just make a new one. On Jan. 3, a search warrant was obtained and executed on the RV located on the 5100 block of Park Lane in Snowflake. During the search, a single grenade was located. Arizona Department of Public Safety EOD technicians responded from the Phoenix area and took appropriate actions to dispose of the device. On Jan. 13, a federal arrest warrant was issued for Mark Blake relating to the explosive device. Blake was charged with knowingly and unlawfully possessing a firearm, specifically a destructive device, which was not identified by a serial number. He was taken into custody without incident by the Federal Bureau of Investigations.
