Man charged after homemade explosive found

A man has been charged after about 100 homes were evacuated and a homemade explosive device was found in Essex.

Police raided the property in Pitsea, near Basildon, on Tuesday and said they found "several items of interest" inside.

They enforced a 100m (328ft) cordon around the address while searches continued until about 18:40 GMT.

Ben Banham, 37, of Rokescroft in the town, was charged with making an explosive substance with intent to endanger life or injure property, and was due to appear at Southend Magistrates' Court on Thursday.

The raid was executed by police acting on "intelligence about the possible possession of combustible materials".

Bomb disposal teams said they found "a small, homemade, potentially explosive device" and a man was arrested.

Essex Police said immediate safety measures were needed after the device was discovered.

However, Ch Insp Paul Hogben said the incident was not being treated as terror-related.

"Nothing we have uncovered suggests any links to other suspects, organisations or groups," he said.

Hogben, the district commander of Basildon, urged people not to speculate while court proceedings were active.

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