Retired explosives specialist arrested in Baquba over fake device outside home

BAQUBA — Police in Diyala arrested a retired explosives specialist Sunday after he placed a fake device outside his home in Baquba in an attempt to mislead legal proceedings against him in an ongoing case, authorities said.

Diyala Police Command said patrols from Baquba Police Station, accompanied by intelligence officers and an explosives unit, were dispatched after reports of a suspicious object outside a residential house. After inspection, the object was found to be a fabricated dummy device and was removed without incident.

Surveillance camera footage and materials found inside the suspect’s home matching those used to assemble the device led investigators to identify him. Police said the man, a retired explosives specialist, had placed the object “to mislead legal procedures against him in an ongoing case” under Article 456 of the Iraqi Penal Code. He confessed to the act after his arrest and the case has been referred to an investigative judge.

Diyala Police Command said “such acts will not pass without accountability, as they represent an attempt to tamper with security and spread panic among citizens.”