Lab Results Expected on Explosive That Blew Off Virginia Man's Foot

Officials may announce this week what caused the explosion that blew off part of an 18-year-old Virginia man's leg as he visited New York's Central Park.

The NYPD said Monday that tests are underway to identify the explosive material Connor Golden accidentally stepped on in the park, NBC New York reports.

Golden, who grew up in Fairfax County, was walking in the park with two friends when he jumped off a rock, his friends said.

The second he hit the ground, something exploded under his left foot and caused a blast heard from blocks away.

Golden was rushed to a hospital, and his left leg needed to be amputated below the knee, his grandparents told News4.

Investigators later found a homemade explosive in a plastic bag in the area where Golden was hurt. Police believe the substance was made by "an explosive hobbyist or experimenter," Lt. Mark Torre, commanding officer of the NYPD's bomb squad, told NBC New York.

Police believe neither Golden nor his friends had anything to do with the creation of the explosive, nor were they using fireworks.

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Golden -- an honor student, musician and former Eagle Scout -- will turn 19 on Sunday. For his birthday, he wanted to receive a skateboard, his grandmother, Roberta Golden, said.

She and her husband, Terry Golden, said they were stunned by the accident.

"Hopefully it's going to work out for him. This is a life-changing thing for this poor young man," Golden's grandfather said Sunday, fighting tears.

The investigation is ongoing, an NYPD spokesman said Wednesday afternoon.

"I hope they found what happened, who did it and get anything else out of Central Park," Golden's grandmother said.

Stay with News4 for more details on this developing story.

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