A pipe bomb landed on a woman’s bed after it was thrown through the window of a house in Co Tyrone during an attack being blamed on dissident republicans by the PSNI.
The device was thrown through the bedroom window at a property in the Melmount Villas area of Strabane on Sunday at about 8.50pm. It was reported to police on Monday.
The woman, in her 60s, who was sleeping at the time, was left “deeply shocked” but uninjured. Another person in the house lifted the pipe bomb and threw it into a nearby hedge.
The device was made safe by army technical officers and then recovered by police for forensic examination.
‘Reckless’ attack
On Tuesday, PSNI chief inspector Alan Hutton described the attack as “reckless”. “I will fairly and squarely point the finger at violent dissident republicans and I know there are people of all shades who will condemn this act,” he said.
“This was a reckless attack on the local community which could have caused serious harm.
“Those who threw this device have clearly no regard for the people living here. “This is a very small minority of people in Northern Ireland who have carried out this attack and I am appealing for the community’s support in identifying the perpetrators and bringing them to justice.”
He appealed for anyone with information to come forward.
