CLEVELAND -- Serious charges have been filed against three men accused of setting off an explosive device at Jacobs Field.

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Boom Heard During Game

The men claim they didn't do it, but NewsChannel5's Tony Gaskins reported that the city said it has a strong case.

Andrew Mendez, 20; Donald Kreiger, 22; and Clifton Oliver, 22 -- all from Elyria, Ohio -- are charged with felonious assault and aggravated arson after allegedly setting off a powerful firecracker that injured two people at last Tuesday's Indians-Phillies game.

Oliver, who is wearing a neck brace, is a Marine home on medical leave; nonetheless, investigators called for a high bond.

"The device has been sent to the ATF offices in Washington, D.C., and it could be a military device," one official said. "We're not sure of that, and for that reason, we also ask for a high bond."

Investigators said that the trio told police three black males threw the explosive into the lower-level smoking area.

The blast cleared both dugouts and rattled a crowd of more than 30,000.

The judge set bond at $50,000, and defense attorneys later cried foul ball.

"The concern we have here about the bond is that the bond is really set to accommodate the demands of the Cleveland Indians, who are beating the drum to get somebody charged in this case," said Dick Lilly, Mendez's attorney. "It's a public relations ploy by the Indians to cover up for their pathetic performance on the field, and accordingly we think the bond should be reduced and expect that it will be."

Defense lawyers claimed that their clients did not throw the device and that there are no witnesses to prove they did. Investigators said that's hard to believe.

Investigators are waiting for ATF agents to classify what type of explosive was used.