Explosive Device Hurled in Front of Moving Pa. Police Cruiser

A Mount Penn man faces several charges after Central Berks Regional police said he threw an explosive device in the street just ahead of a marked patrol vehicle.

Joseph R. Crochunis Jr., 37, of the 2600 block of Perkiomen Avenue was committed to Berks County Prison in lieu of $25,000 bail after arraignment Saturday before District Judge Priscilla Campos in Reading Central Court.

He faces charges of weapons of mass destruction, propulsion of missiles onto a roadway, reckless endangerment and disorderly conduct.

According to court records:

Officer Nicholas Phillips was driving west on Perkiomen Avenue near 26th Street about 11:30 p.m. Friday after receiving a complaint about fireworks in that area of the borough.

Shortly after turning left onto 26th he observed a lit object being thrown toward the front of his patrol unit. The object came within about 10 feet of the vehicle, and when it hit the ground made a very loud explosion.

Phillips stopped abruptly, fearing the projectile would hit or go under his vehicle.

The officer thought the explosion sounded like a gunshot. He spotted three males on a rear porch that was illuminated by his headlights.

One of the males went into the home. He made contact with a man, later identified as Crochunis, who remained on the porch.

Crochunis became argumentative, stating he did not know what the officer was talking about, that he did nothing wrong and was on his own property.

As the officer continued his investigation, Crochunis reportedly said, “Fine it was me, I did it.”

With that, he and the other males went inside the house.

Phillips collected the fragments of the explosive from the street and secured them as evidence.

After clearing the call, Phillips and Sgt. Wayne Levey went to a nearby parking lot to confer. They observed aerial fireworks launched from the backyard of the same residence where they encountered Crochunis moments earlier.

They went to investigate. Levey saw Crochunis kneeling behind a fence on the property next to several spent fireworks casings.

Crochunis again became argumentative. He was detained until Phillips completed his investigation, then released to return to his residence under an order to stop setting off fireworks.

Phillips contacted the Reading Police Bomb Squad. A technician confirmed the debris was from an M-device explosive, a cardboard tube that typically contains 10 grams of flash powder.

M-100s, along with M-80s and cherry bombs, are classified as display-grade fireworks, which are illegal for consumers to possess or use in Pennsylvania.

Crochunis is no stranger to law enforcement in Berks County, according to online court records.

In 2007, he served 56 days to 23 months in the county jail after pleading guilty to propulsion of missiles in Muhlenberg Township. He was also given five years’ probation.

In 2022, he was given a 30-month to five-year sentence after pleading guilty to drug trafficking in Ruscombmanor Township.

The same year, he was sentenced to six to 12 months for fleeing police and driving under a suspended license in Lower Heidelberg Township in 2021.

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