Inset: Michael Beugli during a previous court appearance (KOBI). Background: Surveillance video image of Michael Beugli allegedly planting an explosive in his ex-girlfriend's truck (United States District Court, District of Oregon).
An Oregon man faces federal charges after authorities said he planted and detonated an explosive device in his ex-girlfriend's truck.
Michael Beugli, 32, was charged in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon with possession of a firearm while a convicted felon, possession of unregistered firearm silencers, and possession of an unregistered destructive device. The federal charges came after Beugli was arrested in March for charges in Jackson County in connection with an alleged explosion at the home of his ex-girlfriend's mother.
According to the Ashland Police Department, officers responded to a vehicle explosion in the driveway of a home in Ashland, Oregon, at 4:43 a.m. on March 25.
Police said the vehicle was "parked and unoccupied," but investigators uncovered what they believed was a "potential secondary explosive device in the vehicle." Several agencies joined the investigation, including the Oregon State Police, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
According to a detention memo reviewed by Law&Crime, Beugli was already on law enforcement's radar after an incident on Feb. 24. Authorities said the mother of Beugli's ex-girlfriend called 911 after she saw Beugli "throwing firearms" out of his home and at her daughter, who had been in an on-and-off relationship with Beugli for about 10 years. At the time of the incident, she was trying to leave Beugli for good.
The woman's mother told police that Beugli was "threatening to kill" her daughter.
When police arrived at the residence, the ex-girlfriend told them that Beugli, a convicted felon, had more firearms inside the house. Beugli fled the scene while investigators executed a search warrant and found a total of nine firearms. Some of the weapons were "loaded and modified with tactical additions," and one had an "obliterated" serial number.
While on the run, Beugli allegedly sent his ex-girlfriend several threatening text messages, screenshots of which were included in the detention memo. Beugli allegedly told his ex-girlfriend, "if you wanna go ahead to put me in prison like you did the first time, feel free, dude I'll probably kill you when I get out."
He later allegedly texted her, "You're going to regret stealing all my s—."
During the early morning hours of March 25, neighbors reported the vehicle explosion, which took place in the driveway of a home belonging to the ex-girlfriend's mother. Authorities arrived and found the detonated explosive device on the driver's seat of a truck that belonged to the ex-girlfriend.
Surveillance video taken in the neighborhood captured a man in a hoodie approach the ex-girlfriend's truck, "unlock it, and place an object on the driver's seat." He then walked down an alley and out of the view of the camera, seconds before the truck exploded.
Law enforcement learned that Beugli had a spare key to his ex-girlfriend's truck. Later that day, Beugli was arrested. During his arrest, he allegedly "pretended to pull a gun out of his pocket and pointed his finger at law enforcement." At his home, investigators found several components used to build explosive devices, "high-performance surveillance binoculars," and "initiators" that allegedly matched the device found in the truck.
The ex-girlfriend obtained a stalking order against Beugli, but he allegedly continued to contact her from the Jackson County Jail by having a released inmate deliver her a letter. According to the memo, "The person who delivered the letter told [the ex-girlfriend] that [Beugli] had written him a bill of sale for [her] vehicle and was requesting her keys. She did not provide them."
Beugli remains in custody at the Jackson County Jail on a federal hold. His trial is scheduled to begin on Sept. 28.