Williamson County Jail John Christopher Crawson
John Christopher Crawson is the man who authorities said caused the evacuation of five homes in his Williamson County neighborhood near Round Rock, Texas when police found improvised explosive devices in his house.
Crawson, 47, was charged with terroristic threats and jailed at the Williamson County Jail, his inmate record shows.
KXAN reported the neighborhood was evacuated the morning of Tuesday, February 23, 2021, after police were called to Crawson’s home to serve an arrest warrant following an investigation after he allegedly threatened a family member. He was arrested, and police later found IEDs in his home in the 2500 block of Santa Barbara Loop, they said. The Williamson County Sheriff’s Office told the news outlet they would remain on the scene until the devices were safely removed. The public was asked to avoid the area. Anyone who lives in the area and was not contacted by authorities does not need to evacuate.
Here’s what you need to know:
Authorities Found Explosives in Crawson’s Home February 23 When They Were Serving an Arrest Warrant for Alleged Threats Against a Family Member in January, Officials Said
Happening now: I’m here in Round Rock where people were evacuated after IEDs were found in the home of a man currently under arrest @statesman
Crawson’s charges stemmed from an alleged threat made against a family member on January 18, 2021. His charge, terroristic threats against a family member, is a third-degree felony, his jail record indicates. Officials were serving an arrest warrant at his house when the IEDs were found.
Members of the bomb squad and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) remained at Crawson’s home investigating into the afternoon, KXAN reported.
Here is his jail record:
Williamson County JailJohn Crawson’s jail record
Deputies told KXAN a “lengthy investigation” preceded the arrest warrant. Authorities did not immediately specify what kinds of devices they found or how many.
Rebeccah Macias, a reporter for the Austin-American Statesman, shared photos from the scene on Twitter.
“Happening now: I’m here in Round Rock where people were evacuated after IEDs were found in the home of a man currently under arrest,” she wrote. “An unknown number of explosives were found in the home of 47-year-old John Christopher Crawson when officers executed a search warrant around 11 this morning. About five houses surrounding Crawson’s home were quickly evacuated.”
Fox 29 San Antonio reported residents were returning to their homes early Tuesday evening.
A Neighbor Told Reporters Crawson & His Wife Were Going Through an ‘Ugly Divorce’
Here are some more shots I captured at the 2500 block of Santa Barbara Loop in Round Rock.
John Christopher Crawson, 47, was arrested at 8 a.m. Tuesday for terroristic threat. As of 3 pm, he was still in Williamson County Jail. His bond has yet to be set. More via @PatchTweet
Authorities did not elaborate on the threats Crawson allegedly made to a family member or who he threatened. Neighbors told the Austin-American Statesman that Crawson and his wife were going through “an ugly divorce.”
Crawson was arrested at about 8 a.m. The incident only caused the evacuation of about five homes. Additional precautions were taken to protect other nearby homes and buildings, the newspaper reported.
The incident rattled the neighborhood, neighbor Sonia Guardado told a reporter for the Statesman. She said she had known the Crawsons for about five years.
“We’re very close-knit,” she said of the neighbors. “We’re all hurting right now.”
Another neighbor, Rod Hobbs, told a reporter Crawson was a “nice guy” who helped out his neighbors. He said he picked up tree limbs from a neighbor’s yard following the winter storms.
“He’s always a nice guy. Does things for everybody,” he said, and added, “It’s hard to believe — but anything’s possible.”
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