According to recently released court documents, FBI officials have confiscated more than 150 pipe bombs from the residence of a Virginia man. The individual in question had been using pictures of President Joe Biden for target practice.
During the execution of a search warrant for an unregistered short-barrel rifle allegedly owned by the suspect, Brad Spafford, the FBI made a significant discovery. They stumbled upon the cache, which turned out to be the largest collection of homemade explosives ever seized by the agency. On December 17, Spafford was apprehended and faced charges of violating the National Firearms Act for possessing an illegal firearm.
Six bombs were discovered in a backpack adorned with a patch that displayed the message “#nolivesmatter.” This statement could potentially allude to a far-right organization known for promoting and inciting lethal acts of violence while undermining established societal norms.
The FBI made additional discoveries along with the explosives. They came across bomb-making materials and tools, including fuses, pieces of PVC pipe, and a jar of “HTMD”, a highly explosive substance. Interestingly, this dangerous jar was found stored in a freezer alongside food. Furthermore, the investigators also uncovered written instructions detailing the process of creating these explosives.
In 2023, authorities initiated an investigation into Spafford after receiving a tip from a confidential source. The source claimed that Spafford was stockpiling weapons and ammunition, had injured himself while constructing an explosive device, and had discussed fortifying his home with a 50-caliber firearm mounted on a turret. Additionally, the source reported that Spafford expressed beliefs that political assassinations should be reinstated and speculated that the federal government was training missing children to become school shooters. Following the attempted assassination of Donald Trump in July, Spafford expressed a disturbing hope that any future shooter would not miss Kamala Harris.
“The defendant has used pictures of the President for target practice, expressed support for political assassinations, and recently sought qualifications in sniper-rifle shooting at a local range,” prosecutors wrote in support of keeping Spafford under detention.
Spafford’s defense attorneys contended that he never utilized the firearm mentioned in the initial search warrant. They further argued that there was no substantiating evidence to suggest that he had any intentions of employing the bombs found in his residence.
“There was no evidence that Mr. Spafford did anything other than make some ill-advised comments about the government and political leaders that are not illegal and are protected by the 1st Amendment,” they wrote in a court filing. “Using a likeness of a political leader as a target at a shooting range is a common practice and not a reason to incarcerate someone. The United States’ position that Mr. Spafford is a danger is rank speculation and fear mongering,”