Detectives have said an attack on the PSNI in Strabane was a road side style device attached to a command wire "designed to kill" officers on patrol.
A 20-year-old man was arrested in Newtownstewart yesterday and taken to the Serious Crime Suite at Musgrave Street station in Belfast for questioning about Tuesday's attempted bomb attack, which is thought to have been carried out by dissident republicans.
Parts of the the Liskey Road and Townsend Street were closed off to traffic for two days while forensic officers examined the scene.
A number of residents were also moved from their houses while the search operation was underway.
The road has since reopened and local people allowed to return to their homes.
Local people had reported hearing a loud bang and seeing a cloud smoke just after 8pm on Tuesday evening. Three officers who were on patrol in the area at the time escaped injury but were said to have been left shaken by the attack.
They had been driving in Townsend Street in a police patrol car when the attack took place.
After an extensive search of the area police said they believed the device had been a roadside style bomb with an attached command wire.
Chief Inspector Ivor Morton thanked local residents for their "patience and understanding" while the police operation was taking place.
"Our primary aim throughout has been community safety and we are committed to doing this by working with the community", he said.
"The security operation caused significant disruption to the people of the area, but was necessary to allow for a careful examination of the scene in order to keep people safe.
"This was a complex security operation involving what can only be described as a roadside bomb with a command wire attached.
"This device was designed to kill or seriously injure officers serving the local community in Strabane, but it was also left in a built up area where it could quite easily have killed or maimed members of the public - showing a callous disregard for the safety of the local community".
And making a further appeal for information he said it was "extremely fortunate that we are not talking about the deaths of police officers or members of the public today".
"The overwhelming majority of people in the community do not want this type of activity and we as a police service will continue to work to bring those responsible before the courts", he added.
