ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. --
A Rio Rancho police officer’s car was bombed in northwest Albuquerque on Wednesday night, according to police.
No one was hurt.
FBI investigators said an improvised explosive device was thrown into the driver’s side window of a patrol car and then exploded.
Officials said the IED exploded sometime Wednesday night, but wasn’t discovered until Thursday morning.
The car belongs to a Rio Rancho police officer who lives at the Eagle Ranch Apartments off of Coors and Paseo del Norte boulevards. The car was parked in the complex’s parking lot.
Neighbor Dawn Menza said she thinks that she may have heard the boom.
“It sounded like gunfire and it rattled my bedroom window,” she said.
Rio Rancho police officer John Francis said the explosion rattled the affected officer’s nerves.
“The officer was obviously upset. He came out to his vehicle to go to work, noticed the damage and immediately called police,” Francis said.
Crime scene investigators dusted for prints. The FBI, ATF and Albuquerque police are all investigating the incident.
At this point, authorities don’t know if the officer was targeted personally or as a figure of law enforcement.
“He is somewhat concerned, and we are concerned for the safety of all the officers in the area,” Francis said.
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