Online Ordnance Purchase Goes "Up in Smoke"

Llansantffraid, Powys, England A collector who bought a WWII-era Hungarian stick grenade online for 51 pounds (approximately 66 US dollars) was forced to turn the UXO over to EOD for a controlled detonation.

Kallum Williams said the item was advertised as decommissioned, but when it arrived it appeared still have explosive powder inside. He called the police after realizing it should have had holes in it where the powder had been removed. "It felt like a saltshaker," Williams said.

He waited up all night for EOD to arrive. "We were too nervous to sleep," he said. When the team did arrive, an x-ray revealed that there was powder inside. It was removed to a nearby field for safe detonation.

According to Williams, the seller claimed the grenade had sand inside, but the EOD team found no signs it had ever been opened. He urged other collectors to check their decommissioned weapons.

It is not known if the seller returned the money to the buyer since the grenade is now "up in smoke" (literally).