Alabama Man Pleads Guilty to Setting Off Explosive Outside AG’s Office
Reaction pours in from top Department of Justice (DOJ) officials, after another violent incident targeted a government official.
This time, an Alabama man pleaded guilty to detonating an explosive device outside the office of Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall in Montgomery.
No one was injured in the incident which occurred early in the morning on February 24, 2024.
In his plea hearing, 26-year-old Kyle Benjamin Douglas Calvert of Irondale, Alabama, admitted to making a homemade explosive using a variety of materials. He lit the device and fled the scene, before being arrested April 10.
“This defendant built a bomb using nails and screws as shrapnel and detonated it outside the Alabama Attorney General’s Office, endangering a public institution and members of the community,” said U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland. “Public servants should never be targeted for doing their jobs.”
While his exact motive is unclear, prosecutors say that in the days before the incident, Calvert put stickers on state buildings that advocated for a variety of political ideologies. Some stickers included the phrase “Support your local antifa,” although the defendant claims he has no affiliation with the left-wing group.
“This attack on the Alabama Attorney General’s Office was an attack on the American justice system,” said Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) Director Steven Dettelbach. “Violent, targeted attacks like this, aim to harm, whether physically or through fear and intimidation, the civil servants and public officials who serve our communities and country.”
Calvert pleaded guilty to malicious use of an explosive device. He faces a minimum of five years and a maximum of 20 years in federal prison. A sentencing date has not been set yet.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is continuing the investigation with assistance from ATF.