Santa Ana man charged in illegal fireworks explosion in Garden Grove that injured 9

A 46-year-old man was charged Monday with several felonies related to the detonation of illegal fireworks in Garden Grove that injured nine people, including an 8-year-old boy.

Frank Lazcano Lopez of Santa Ana was charged with two counts of use of a destructive device causing mayhem and great bodily injury, a count of use of a destructive device causing bodily injury and a count of dissuading a witness by force, all felonies.

Police were called to the 13800 block of Rosita Place in Garden Grove about 9:30 p.m. on the Fourth of July regarding an explosion that blew out windows at an apartment complex and shattered the windows on a vehicle, police said.

The 8-year-old boy was rushed to OC Global Medical Center in Santa Ana with a serious eye injury and burns, police said. Five other children were also injured by the explosion and treated by paramedics who responded to the explosion, police said.

When officers went to OC Global they found out three other people were injured from the blast and went to the hospital on their own, police said. Five of the nine injured in the blast were hospitalized, police said.

The blast was caught on a cell phone video, and Lopez was one of the suspects seen igniting the box of fireworks who was arrested, police said.

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