Kevin Johnson

USA TODAY

WASHINGTON — Federal authorities on Saturday said they recovered a large shipment of commercial-grade fireworks stolen from a CSX train traveling between Chicago and Detroit.

Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives spokeswoman Ginger Colbrun said the 30 cases of commercial fireworks were recovered based on a tip the agency received. Authorities have made no arrests and the investigation is ongoing, she added.

It is possible, Colbrun said Friday, that the material could have been taken during the train's stopover in Ohio. Authorities said it was not immediately clear why the shipment may have been targeted. The fireworks were discovered missing Thursday. The material could have represented a potential danger in the hands of inexperienced people, Colbrun said.

In the past, fireworks have been cannibalized by some criminal suspects, including the Boston Marathon bombers, to construct deadly explosives.

Material from commercial grade fireworks also was used by Aurora, Colo., theater shooter James Holmes in 2012 to booby-trap his apartment with explosive devices to target law enforcement officers. The devices were discovered and dismantled before they were triggered.







