WPBN: A man from Virginia is being held in custody by the prosecution after they assert that they discovered what could be the most “finished explosive devices” in the history of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) inside his property, which is located on twenty acres outside of Norfolk.
At the beginning of this month, Brad Spafford was arrested on a single count of illegally possessing a short-barreled firearm that was not registered.
When the FBI, which is comprised of bomb technicians, carried out a search order on his house after the arrest, they allegedly uncovered a cache of over 150 purported pipe bombs that were x-rayed at the location.
This is according to the prosecution. According to reports, several of them were classified as “lethal.”
The prosecution claims that some of the pipe bombs “were preloaded into an apparent wearable vest,” while other pipe bombs were found in a separate garage and a backpack during the investigation.
Prosecutors claim that Spafford “expressed support for political assassinations, recently sought qualifications in sniper-rifle shooting at a local range, and used pictures of President Joe Biden for target practice” in court documents arguing that he should stay in jail.
Prosecutors claimed that Spafford “stated that he hoped the shooter doesn’t miss ‘Kamala'” in a conversation with his neighbor following the Pennsylvania assassination attempt on President-elect Donald Trump.
According to prosecutors, Spafford’s probe began when his neighbor said that he was reportedly hoarding firearms and homemade ammunition and that he had lost three fingers on his right hand in 2021 while working on a homemade explosive device.
Spafford’s lawyers requested his release in a document on Tuesday, pointing out that he was only charged with one count of unauthorized firearm possession, that there is no proof Spafford ever used the weapon, and that he has no criminal history.
Additionally, his lawyers stated that there was no proof he was capable of detonating the explosives himself and that “professionally trained explosive technicians had to rig the devices to explode them.”
“The government argues that Mr. Spafford should be detained because he poses a danger to the community in spite of the fact that the government has been investigating and carefully watching Mr. Spafford for approximately two years through the use of a confidential human source who was a friend and confidant of Mr. Spafford,” according to his attorneys. “During all of that time, there is no evidence or allegation that Mr. Spafford committed or attempted to commit any act of violence.”
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Additionally, his legal representatives stated that it is “common practice” to use the likeness of a political leader at a shooting range, and that his alleged “ill-advised comments about the government and political leaders” are protected by the Constitution.
