Sheriff's lieutenant charged with murder after one MILLION pounds of fireworks exploded in deadly fireball

By JAMES CIRRONE, US NEWS REPORTER Published: 20:39, 11 April 2026 | Updated: 20:42, 11 April 2026 A former California police officer is one of five people who have been charged with murder after prosecutors say they connected him to a fireworks explosion that killed seven warehouse workers. Samuel Machado, a former lieutenant with the Yolo County Sheriff's Office, had one million pounds of fireworks on his property at the time of the blast and used his status as a law enforcement officer to shield the illegal operation from investigators, according to prosecutors. Machado was placed on administrative leave after last summer's explosion in Esparto, which could be felt up to 20 miles away. It also destroyed a family's farm and caused a 78-acre grass fire. Among the dead workers were Christopher Goltiao Bocog, 45, and Neil Justin Li, 41, both from San Francisco; Joel Jeremias Melendez, 28, of Sacramento; and Carlos Javier Rodriguez-Mora, 43, from San Andreas. Two brothers - Jesus Manaces Ramos, just 18, and Jhony Ernesto Ramos, 22, of San Pablo - were also killed in the explosion, along with Angel Mathew Voller, 18, from Stockton. The identities were confirmed by the Yolo County coroner's office. Blackstar Fireworks, Inc. and Devastating Pyrotechnics LLC, allegedly manufactured fireworks so powerful that they didn't even qualify as fireworks. On July 1, 2025, a warehouse in Esparto, California, that was storing the fireworks exploded, killing seven workers Among the five people charged with murder was Samuel Machado, a former lieutenant with the Yolo County Sheriff's Office. Prosecutors said he had one million pounds of fireworks on his property The companies behind the scheme stored the explosives at Machado's property, according to a 30-count indictment returned by the Yolo County district attorney's office. An official within the county Building Services Department received a tip in June 2022 that Machado's property was being used for this purpose, but no followup action was taken.  Emails show that officials said they would 'tread lightly' in their search of the area because it was owned by 'deputies that we work with'. 'Inexplicably, no code enforcement occurred, even though all dangerous fireworks had been banned by ordinance throughout rural Yolo County since 2001,' said an investigative report filed by the grand jury last month.  'In the absence of official oversight and enforcement, unmitigated expansion of the fireworks businesses operating at the site in Esparto led directly to death and destruction.'  The indictment alleged that this was a decadelong conspiracy that 'turned the property of a former Sheriff's Lieutenant Sam Machado into the Northern California hub for an illegal enterprise that imports illegal explosives on the black market', according to Deputy District Attorney Clara Nabity. Devastating Pyrotechnics CEO and owner Kenneth Chee, operations manager Jack Lee and business partner Gary Chan Jr. all were charged with murder, as was Douglas Tollefsen of Blackstar Fireworks. Seven people who were charged for their alleged role in the July 2025 explosion were arrested early Thursday morning, District Attorney Jeff Reisig said. Pictured: A view of the explosion from the ground in Esparto The explosion was so powerful it could be felt up to 20 miles away. It also destroyed a family's farm and created a 78-acre grass fire Yolo County District Attorney Jeff Reisig said this was one of the largest investigations he's ever conducted, resulting in a 30-count indictment against the alleged co-conspirators This included Blackstar Fireworks owner Craig Cutright. Ronald Botelho III, who worked for Blackstar, has been in custody since December on separate charges and was among those arrested and charged on Thursday. The enterprise allegedly imported more than 11 million pounds of explosives and related materials, storing them near a family pool and where others lived, Nabity said. None of the storage containers were approved by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. No license would have allowed them to store the materials near homes or roadways. Devastating Pyrotechnics is accused of dramatically scaling up its operation over time. In 2015, it had just 13 storage containers on Machado's property and by 2025, there was a sprawling compound of more than 50 containers and a massive 5,000-square-foot warehouse. Machado's wife, Tammy, was employed in an administrative role at the Sheriff's Office when the explosion occurred. She has since been placed on leave and separately charged with child and animal endangerment for allegedly storing illegal fireworks on their property, along with accusations of tax and mortgage fraud. The sweeping indictments also pile on a string of additional charges, including maintaining an unsafe workplace, unlawfully starting a fire, insurance fraud, child endangerment, animal cruelty, tax fraud and possession of illegal assault weapons.  'This investigation has thus far involved dozens, maybe hundreds of law enforcement agencies around the state and the country,' Reisig said. 'It has taken us across California, it's taken us across the nation and it's even taken us across our national borders.' The victims’ families have filed a $35 million claim against the county and state fireworks regulators, accusing them of widespread negligence for allowing the illegal operation to continue unchecked.  No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? 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