Man (29) arrested after homemade bomb detonates at Irish pub Fibber McGee’s

The explosion in Leederville yesterday was followed by a second bomb scare that shut down parts of the city just hours later.

Police say the first makeshift bomb was placed between Zambrero Mexican restaurant and Fibber McGee’s Irish pub when it exploded about 1.30pm.

The explosion caused shrapnel and debris to cover a distance of about 10m, however, there were no injuries.

Security footage allegedly shows the man placing the device before walking away.

Nine News Perth journalist Alexia Pesce said children were in the area when the bomb exploded.

“A lot of people were having lunch,” she told Radio 6PR.

Local businesses described the explosion as “a bomb going off” although there was no damage to the premises.

“It was pretty loud,” one member of staff at a nearby venue said. “It sounded like a large bowling ball crashing on the ground.”

Later, around 10.20pm, police were called to a location near the intersection of Wellington Street and King Street in Perth after a person called to report finding a similar improvised explosive device in the vehicle of a person known to them.

Police and emergency services attended and cordoned off the area until the Tactical Response Group’s bomb unit officers could attend and disarm the item.

The area was cordoned off as WA Police’s tactical response group bomb response unit rushed to the scene and “rendered the item safe”.

“The item was confirmed to be a homemade, makeshift device similar to the one detonated in Leederville earlier in the day,” police said.

An investigation led Perth Detectives to a home in Lansing Street, Queens Park, in the early hours of the morning where a search warrant was executed and the man was arrested.

The man, who was refused police bail, was due before Perth Magistrates Court today charged with unlawfully causing an explosive device to explode and making or possessing explosives under suspicious circumstances.

It has been alleged that the man had created the make-shift bomb by putting sparklers and nitrous oxide canisters inside a paint can.

Police say he was taken into custody without incident before he was charged on Friday morning.