KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Two men have been indicted by a federal grand jury for illegally manufacturing and selling fireworks after an explosion at a Grandview, Missouri business in January.
James Witt, 76, of Grandview, and Thomas McKeehan, 66, of Belton, Mo., are both accused of making the fireworks at Witt's business, JW's Lawn and Garden Equipment. That business was destroyed in a Jan. 3 explosion.
In a press release from the U.S. Attorney Office for the Western District of Missouri, prosecutors allege that Witt and McKeehan were using the business as a front to make explosives, including M-80 and M-100s. They are accused of purchasing bulk supplies of chemicals and then combining them to make the devices.
McKenna also allegedly stored fireworks in a Belton, Missouri storage unit. The pair is accused of trying to sell those explosives to someone in Wisconsin for $32,000 a few weeks after the explosion in Grandview.
They also allegedly illegally purchased 40 cases of commercial fireworks for $10,000 in November 2016.
Witt and McKeehan are charged with one count of conspiracy to engage in the business of manufacturing and dealing in explosives from Jan. 3 to Jan 17, 2017, The pair is also charged with one count of engaging in the business of dealing in explosive materials from Jan. 3 to Jan. 17, 2017.
McKeehan is charged with one count of making a materially false statement. Prosecutors say he told ATF agents that he didn't know about Witt's involvement in illegally manufacturing fireworks at his business.
