Tuesday, March 11, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.
Federal authorities believe James West may be linked to the theft of at least 200 pounds of dynamite Jan. 25 from a mine east of Henderson.
The stolen dynamite is believed to have included 23 two-pound sticks of explosives that authorities found March 2 in an unmarked cardboard box near the U.S. Post Office in Henderson.
West was arrested by federal agents on Saturday at his home, where he lives with an aunt and grandmother. They found 23 sticks of dynamite at the residence, and recovered an additional 150 pounds of explosives Sunday from a culvert off U.S. 95 near Mount Charleston.
During an initial appearance Monday before U.S. Magistrate Lawrence Leavitt, a public defender for West argued that he wasn't a flight risk and should be released from custody pending a March 24 preliminary hearing.
But Leavitt agreed with prosecutors who said West initially hid from authorities and at first told authorities that he planned to blow up the Henderson Police Department.
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