Sentencing hearing in Nederland explosion case delayed

May 20—The man who is expected to go to prison for causing a house explosion in Nederland had his sentencing hearing delayed.

Jason Korte, 44, pleaded guilty in February to child abuse, fourth-degree arson and possession of an explosive device, and as part of the plea agreement attorneys agreed Korte will be sentenced to six to 12 years in prison.

Korte was supposed to be sentenced in Boulder District Court on Friday, but his attorney Benjamin Collett filed a motion prior to the hearing asking for a continuance, noting a medical issue.

Boulder District Judge Thomas Mulvahill initially denied the motion, but Collett filed a motion to reconsider that was discussed at Friday's hearing.

Collett in the renewed motion attached a doctor's note that explained the medical issue and why a delay of eight weeks might help clear it up.

Boulder Deputy District Attorney Ryan Day said he was reluctantly objecting, as he sympathized with Korte's medical concerns. But Day said the victim in the case was strongly objecting to a continuance and also noted that Korte has had this same medical concern since last year.

Mulvahill noted he set the sentencing hearing out further than usual in February due to this same concern, and echoed Day's thoughts.

"At some point, he's going to prison," Mulvahill said. "That's the stipulation."

But Collett said there was information from the doctor that the issue was at an "inflection point," and also noted Korte has been out on bond since the beginning of the case with no issues.

Mulvahill granted the continuance and set the case for a sentencing hearing on July 13.

"One time and one time only," Mulvahill said.

According to an arrest affidavit, the explosion happened in the first-floor living room of a home in the 200 block of Alpine Drive in Nederland on July 3, 2020. The explosion blew out windows on the first and second floors and also shattered a sliding door and buckled several doorways.

While the sprinkler system put out the resulting fire, Korte was injured in the explosion and taken to a hospital to be treated for burns. The owner of the house, a woman, was also on scene but was not injured.

According to the affidavit, when fire crews went inside the home, they saw about 20 oxygen cylinders, commercial fireworks, rifles including an AR-15 and an AK-47, and boxes labeled "explosive."

Once investigators obtained a warrant for the address, a team did a search of the home and found three gallons of hash oil concentrate along with butane and other supplies used in the marijuana extraction process. They also found 30 to 50 marijuana plant seedlings.

According to the affidavit, officials also discovered containers labeled as containing triacetone triperoxide, a highly explosive substance known as TATP. Because of the volatility of the substance, officials used a countercharge to detonate the box on site, and investigators said the resulting explosion "was significant enough to indicate that the devices likely did, in fact, contain TATP."

Officials also detonated another box of unspecified explosive material that investigators said produced an even bigger explosion that shattered windows on the property, cracked the concrete driveway and buckled a garage door inward.

Police also used a bomb robot to X-ray a safe and discovered a device that appeared to be an improvised explosive device made with piping. That device was also detonated after the safe was opened.

In an interview with federal agents at the hospital, Korte said the initial explosion was caused when he moved a box of explosive materials from his kitchen to the living room in preparation of loading them into cardboard tubes.

According to the affidavit, Korte also admitted to extracting hash oil and creating explosives, but said the explosives were a hobby and that he never sold them to anyone and never intended to hurt anyone.

Korte also reportedly admitted to having his juvenile children in the house at times, leading to the child abuse charges.