Two employees killed in blast at Solos Extracts facility
Ryan Bassham, 35, has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder following a large explosion at a marijuana extraction facility near Tulsa, Oklahoma, that killed two of his employees and damaged surrounding businesses, prosecutors said Monday.
The blast occurred around 1 a.m. at Solos Extracts, partially tearing the roof from a building, crumpling doors and scattering debris across an industrial park. Bassham turned himself in over the weekend after the charges were filed.
The two victims, Michael Newman and Stephen Scott, both worked for Bassham, according to Adam Jones, spokesman for the Tulsa County district attorney’s office. Jones said prosecutors believe the employees were unlawfully manufacturing hazardous chemicals at the facility that resulted in the explosion.
Bassham was booked into a Tulsa jail and released after posting a $2 million bond. Court records did not list an attorney for Bassham, and phone numbers for him and the business could not immediately be found. The Associated Press left a message with a law firm that previously represented Bassham.
The explosion damaged surrounding businesses in the industrial park in addition to the structural damage to the Solos Extracts building itself.
The murder charges were announced Monday, four days after the early-morning blast. Bassham faces two counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of his two employees, according to the Tulsa County district attorney’s office.