New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez condemned the bombing of two churches in her state on Sunday morning while the two churches were holding services. Fortunately, no one among the worshippers in both churches was reported injured, according to the Las Cruces Police Department.
It said only minor damage occurred at the Calvary Baptist Church and Holy Cross Catholic Church, which are more than three miles apart.
"Only a coward would place an explosive device in a place of peace and a place of worship," Martinez said at a press conference right after the incident. "If your intention was to bring fear to those who worship, you have failed. Our faith is too strong and our fellowship is unbreakable."
Martinez vowed to catch the culprits responsible for the bombings. "Whoever did this will feel the full pressure of the law," she said.
The Las Cruces Police Department said the incidents are being investigated separately.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) have joined state and local police in investigating the incidents.
The first explosion occurred at Calvary Baptist Church and the police were dispatched at about 8:20 a.m. An explosive device damaged a mailbox, located on a wall near the administrative entrance to the church.
Several worshippers were in the church for a service at 8:30 a.m. when the explosion happened.
Dennis Llewellyn was handing out pamphlets at the church when he heard the explosion.
"It was in a mailbox that exploded completely," he told ABC News. "The mailbox was completely opened up and twisted and blown apart. It just obliterated everything. If anyone was in front of it, it would have killed them."
Llewellyn told reporters that after the explosion he recognized bomb parts that included a battery.
"It was a real bomb, I saw all the parts," said Llewellyn, who described himself a former Special Forces member with the Marines.
He said about 30 people were inside the church when bomb went off, rocking the structure.
About 20 minutes later, the Las Cruces police were dispatched to the Holy Cross Catholic Church where an explosive device was detonated in a trash can near the front entrance of the church.
Church services were going on when the incident occurred. Parishioners were evacuated through another exit, the police said.
The explosion damaged the trash container and glass entryway.
Monsignor John Anderson said the explosion rocked the main door to the Holy Cross Catholic Church as he was conducting the communion ceremony.
"I was right in the middle of saying the words 'take and eat, this is my body' and there was a 'Pow!' I mean, I knew it had to be more than a gunshot," Anderson told a local TV network.
Anderson said there would have been casualties had the explosion happened 10 minutes later.
"I'm just thankful to God nobody was standing by the door, because there's usually always somebody standing there. But because it was the consecration part of the Mass, everybody was kneeling down and facing toward the altar," Anderson said. "Ten minutes later we would have been leaving and standing around that space."
The two churches have been closed to the public until the investigation is complete, the police said, adding that they are following several leads but no arrests have been made.
