Former cop charged in blast

BY ROCCO PARASCANDOLA AND TOSHI MAEDA

Joseph Rodriguez, the troubled former cop at the center of the pipe bomb explosion in Times Square, was arrested yesterday on charges of planting the bomb there himself, police said.

Detectives picked up Rodriguez, 27, at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, where he had been under psychiatric observation since July 21, two days after he was injured by the blast in the subway station at West 43rd Street and Eighth Avenue.

Rodriguez, whose family was with him when he was arrested, was charged with arson, reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a weapon.

At his arraignment, a judge, acting on a request from Rodriguez’s lawyer, Edgar De Leon, ordered the suspect to undergo a psychiatric exam at Bellevue Hospital Center. The judge set a bail hearing for Aug. 31.

The explosion prompted a massive response from the Police Department, as passersby fearing a terrorist attack ran for cover.

However, there were questions about Rodriguez’s account.

Police and those who know the four-year-veteran say he has been suffering from nightmares and flashbacks since he helped people escape the World Trade Center attack.

The day of the pipe bomb explosion was Rodriguez’s next to last on the job, as the NYPD was forcing him to retire because of a psychological disability.

Assigned to the Transit Bureau, Rodriguez told police that after completing his shift at the Manhattan Transit Task Force, he saw a burning backpack in the stairway leading to the A, C and E lines. He also told police he ushered several commuters to safety.

But investigators were dubious. Rodriguez failed to call for backup, and his injuries - minor burns and an injured neck - were not consistent with the force of the blast, police said.

According to the arrest warrant filed by the Manhattan district attorney’s office, police videotape footage showed Rodriguez in the stairwell where the bomb was placed, about the time it detonated. A witness said he saw someone matching Rodriguez’s description run up the stairs, crouch and shield himself seconds before the explosion.

Police also lifted two of Rodriguez’s fingerprints from the bag, according to the warrant. He had told investigators that he had only kicked the black backpack. Earlier in the day, Rodriguez was seen carrying a black backpack, the warrant said.

Police found a paper with a handwritten Internet address on it in the backpack. That site, the warrant said, advertised bomb kits for sale and showed how to make explosives.

Rodriguez lives on Mulberry Street, in Little Italy. His family had no comment yesterday.

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