Teen who drilled ammonia pipe believed "urban legend"

RIVERVIEW -- Sheriff's officials say the teenager who drilled into an ammonia pipeline Monday believed "an urban legend" that there was money in the pipe.

The 16-year-old boy, whose name has not been released, said a 27-year-old woman told him a few weeks ago that someone told her they had put money into the pipeline that runs under the U.S. 301 bridge at the Alafia River, said sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter.

Deputies believed the boys' story, Carter said. "They all seemed truthful when they were interviewed."

Deputies interviewed the teen who did the drilling last night at Tampa General Hospital, where he is being treated for burns over 18 percent of his body, she said. The anhydrous ammonia that flows through the pipeline from the port to fertlizer companies in Polk County is highly caustic. It causes burns on contact and can cause respiratory distress. The teen was burned when he drilled into the pipeline.

The cousins who were with him told the boy not to break into the pipeline and had turned to leave when they heard a noise as he breached the pipe, Carter said. The boys then went home. When the injured teen's symptoms worsened, he told his mother what had happened, and she called an ambulance.

No charges have been filed in the case, but the investigation is continuing, Carter said.

- Abbie VanSickle, Times staff writer