PELHAM, New Hampshire USA — Police are investigating whether a device resembling a pipe bomb was intentionally left at a vacant property to cause a scare.

Contractors working on the property at 5 Old Bridge Street South yesterday called police at about 8:22 a.m. after they found a PVC pipe capped on both ends in the kitchen.

Police said an adversarial relationship had developed between a recently evicted tenant and the property developer.

The police and fire departments alerted the state police bomb squad, which arrived shortly after 10 a.m.

"They came down, examined the item, deemed it a non-explosive and took it into evidence," Chief Joseph Roark said.

Within 30 minutes a squad member entered the property in a protective suit to investigate the device.

Bystanders were kept back about 250 feet during the investigation, and police briefly stopped traffic on Route 38 near Old Bridge Street South.

The tenant, whose identity was not released, was described as a person of interest in the investigation.

The property is owned by Sun Bridge Professional Center, according to assessing information, and was slated for demolition and redevelopment, police said.

Roark said caution had been taken with knowledge that the prior tenant was an amateur rocketry hobbyist.

Pelham fire Chief Michael Walker said the tenant had been permitted to burn off excess propellents related to his hobby and possessed federal licenses to transport explosives.

The pipe was between 18 and 24 inches long and was covered with stickers, Roark said.

Roark said there will be further testing at the state labs to determine whether the device held flammable or toxic substances. Investigators are still trying to determine why the pipe was in the kitchen.

Copyright © 2007, The Union-Leader.