A Greenfield man has pleaded guilty to a charge of possessing an unregistered firearm after detonating a homemade car bomb in his neighbor’s vehicle in December 2018.
Alex Arsenault, 35, made the plea at a federal court hearing on Wednesday.
The case began at 9:14 a.m. on Dec. 1, 2018, when Greenfield police received a call from Schoolhouse Road about an explosion at the home of Leela and James Conway. “They heard a loud noise earlier in the morning, it was like a really huge bang,” Police Chief Brian Giammarino recalled the victims telling him, before going outside to discover that the blast had come from inside their Jeep Grand Cherokee, which had been parked outside. “There was debris from this blast like 75 feet out in a lot of directions,” Giammarino said.
The FBI and the State Police and Fire Marshal’s office came out and started their investigation later that day, he said. There were no injuries reported, just a house-shaking blast around 6:30 a.m., according to court documents.
“This didn’t make sense,” Giammarino said of the bombing. “It was a shock to everybody,” he said, but mostly to the Conways. “I can’t say enough good things about them,” he said, and that they had no apparent enemies. The Conways did not respond to a request for comment.
Investigators interviewed next-door neighbor Arsenault later in the day after the Conways mentioned that Arsenault had previously complained about their boys riding their four-wheeler around, according to an affidavit by FBI Special Agent Shayne Tongbua, which the Ledger-Transcript obtained through a reporter from the Daily Beast.
During the interview, Arsenault “stated he did not have any issues with his neighbors, but he gets annoyed when people ride by his house on the snowmobile trail,” according to the affidavit. Arsenault had also previously complained to local police about loud noises from vehicles revving their engines in front of his house, low-flying aircraft, nearby gunfire, and OHRV and snowmobile traffic multiple times in the past, according to the affidavit.
Investigators also noticed several strips of gray duct tape on the wall in his house that appeared to be consistent with pieces recovered from the explosion site.
Several days later, on Dec. 20, 2018, a concerned citizen unnamed in the report told the FBI that Arsenault was buying Tannerite and was seeking to create miniature explosives, with the intent of posting explosion videos on YouTube, according to the affadavit.
Early in 2019, the Greenfield Police Department received multiple complaints of small explosions coming from Arsenault’s residence, and the FBI’s tipster told them Arsenault planned to blow up a shed on his property, and detailed his recent online transactions involving Tannerite and other explosive products. The FBI discovered that Arsenault had purchased surgical tape, duct tape, and matches similar to materials found at the explosion site in the month leading up to the blast through online transaction records.
After seizing items from the blast site and a search of Arsenault’s home, investigators determined Arsenault built a homemade bomb with a low explosive main charge and a non-electrical fusing system. The search also yielded a typed document on how to answer law enforcement questions about the destruction of a vehicle, according to a press release from the Department of Justice on Thursday.
Arsenault was arrested on Nov. 14, 2019. His charge, possessing an unregistered firearm, refers to the bomb he made, which is a firearm by legal definition, according to court documents. Arsenault’s bail conditions stipulated that he move out of Greenfield, not contact the Conways, and refrain from possessing a firearm, destructive device, or other dangerous weapons, according to court documents. Arsenault’s criminal history at the time of his arrest included charges for criminal mischief and simple assault, but no convictions, according to the affidavit.
“By creating and detonating a homemade bomb, the defendant severely damaged a vehicle and jeopardized lives,” said U.S. Attorney Scott W. Murray on Thursday. “I am grateful to the FBI and the law enforcement officers whose hard work identified the Mr. Arsenault and led to this prosecution. We will always work closely with our law enforcement partners to identify and prevent threats to public safety.”
“Annoyed by what he believed to be excessive noise coming from his neighbor’s home, Alex Arsenault knowingly and willingly made a home-made explosive bomb, detonated it on their property, and put his fellow citizens in fear for their lives,” Joseph R. Bonavolonta, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Boston Division said on Thursday. “The quick and decisive action by the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, and our partners at the Greenfield Police Department, averted an already hazardous situation from spiraling dangerously out of control.”
Arsenault remains out on bail after pleading guilty, and is scheduled to be sentenced on May 18.