Posted on 07/06/2026 2:18:34 PM PDT by Ciaphas Cain
GREENSBORO, N.C. — Two 18-year-olds are facing several charges after court documents say they had a homemade “plasma cannon” on the property of Smith High School in Greensboro.
Solomon Caravello-Bell and Chayce Harricharan were arrested July 5, according to a magistrate’s order filed in Guilford County.
Court documents show Caravello-Bell and Harricharan are charged with possession of a weapon of mass destruction, malicious use of an explosive to damage property, felony breaking and entering and possessing an explosive on educational property.
According to the magistrate’s order, investigators said the suspects had a homemade plasma cannon at Smith High School.
The court documents allege the device was used to burn a bush and damage a plexiglass door at the school.
The documents also allege Caravello-Bell and Harricharan broke into a building at 2407 S. Holden Road, which is the address for Smith High School, with the intent to commit a felony or larceny.
(Excerpt) Read more at wxii12.com ...
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How about “flame thrower”? Because, essentially, that is what it was. Not a weapon of mass destruction…but not something you want Beavis and Butt Head playing with in the basement of the school.
I was a teacher at Smiff during Spring Break in college. Dumbest kids in the world.
It was a plasma cutter and they used it to cut through the door.
“Thomas Edison did not intentionally burn down the car, but an accident involving his portable laboratory caused a fire in the baggage car of the Grand Trunk Railroad train in 1862. The incident occurred when a stick of phosphorus was jarred from its shelf during a lurch, igniting the carriage and forcing the enraged conductor to eject Edison along with all his equipment.”
“The conductor reportedly boxed Edison’s ears severely in response to the fire, an injury that contributed to Edison’s lifelong hearing loss, though some theories attribute his deafness to scarlet fever or other incidents. “
So there you have it [according to one source...].
Somebody’s always picking on the Nerds !
BS.
It is not a real plasma cannon. At best it is a focused propane burner.
I used to make hydrogen balloons I used aluminum and lye and h2O, lit the tail and let them go.
Guess what, uncontrolled drone like things with an explo5ive payload.
when I did that 60 years ago no one would have considered them anything at all, but today who knows how I might get jacked up.
I wont even talk about my The Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab
What a GLORIOUS childhood you must have had! :-)
He died last month
“I wont even talk about my The Gilbert U-238 Atomic Energy Lab”
That was before my time and I am almost 80.
It’s a good thing someone saw promise in the ‘rocket boys’ of CalTech or we wouldn’t have JPL.
Made me look:
Ahmed Mohamed, known as “clock boy,” resides in Doha, Qatar, where he originally moved with his family in 2015 on a full academic scholarship from the Qatar Foundation. Now in his mid-20s, he has continued to share his life, travels, and interest in invention on his official Ahmed Mohamed Instagram page.
"The Radioactive Boy Scout: The True Story of a Boy and His Backyard Nuclear Reactor"
https://www.amazon.com/Radioactive-Boy-Scout-Backyard-Nuclear-ebook/dp/B000FC1AJS/ref=sr_1_2?Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.x=0&Adv-Srch-Books-Submit.y=0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.wIaf5qtTsT04VpnrgbCWvymIUBkz4YgSIAdhijLhOF8IC8-le64y8l5lGLxGXZJq.f8sy0W2QbMBxIHMZyjqcteSbNEnO8RV0EycBJOPmJYQ&dib_tag=se&qid=1783396160&refinements=p_28%3Aradioactive+boy+scout&s=books&sr=1-2&unfiltered=1
David Hahn had a tragic life after that. He served in the Navy for a bit then was medically discharged. Once a civilian again he lapsed back into his old ways and started playing with radioactive material again. He was arrested for stealing smoke detectors. When he appeared in court his face was covered in lesions and sores from radiation sickness. He died about ten years ago, just before turning forty, from a significant overdose of alcohol and fentanyl.
The guy definitely burned the candle on both ends, that's for sure.
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