Suspect in Alleged Pipe Bomb Case Incompetent for Trial

BOSTON - A federal judge on Tuesday found that a 62-year-old Chelmsford man is not competent to stand trial on charges that he planted explosive devices on National Grid power lines in Tyngsborough last year in an alleged plot to knock out power from Canada to the United States.

In her ruling, U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge Page Kelley writes that Danny M. Kelly is presently suffering from a mental disease or defect rendering him incompetent to aid in his defense.

The Judge Magistrate ordered that Kelly remain in the custody of the Attorney General's Office for hospitalization in an appropriate facility, the Federal Medical Center at Devens. There will be a review of his status in 60 days.

While the prosecutor and defense attorney agree with Kelley's ruling, Kelly does not.

Kelly wrote, "I feel that report is based on false statements, flawed logic and false assumptions...Cleary I have not been indicted fairly. The indictment is a blatant scam,'' he wrote.

On March 30, 2016, Tyngsboro firefighters responded to Locust Avenue near National Grid power lines for a brush fire that officials suspect was caused by one of five incendiary devices.

A note found at the scene explained that the devices were designed to cause disruption to power from Canada to the United States.

Investigators turned to Kelly, who in a 2004 case, cut 18 phone and cable lines in an extortion attempt against Nortel Networks, his former employer.

Days later, a raid of Kelly's 26 School St. home by the FBI and other officials yielded chemicals that could be used to make the pipe bomb-type devices.

Kelly claims he was denied the fame and fortune he deserves for four patented devices he created while working as an engineer for Nortel. Kelly sued Nortel over the patents and lost.

Over the years, he has filed about a dozen civil lawsuits in federal court claiming he has been cheated out of his fortune.

As part of his 2004 case, Kelly was evaluated by Dr. Roger H. Gray, who performed a forensic psychological evaluation. Gray diagnosed Kelly as having symptoms of bipolar and paranoid-personality disorders.

In a recent psychiatric report, Kelly was diagnosed with delusional disorder (persecutory type), Dysthymia and paranoid personality disorder. He stopped taking his medication because he did not think he needed treatment.

In addition, Kelly was diagnosed in 2015 with metastic carcinoid tumor that has spread to his liver. He needs medical care including monthly hormone injections and fluids drained from his abdomen.

A defense-hired psychologist Ekaterina Pivavarova states that Kelly work history has been punctuated by lawsuit and disagreements with his employers which stem in large part from his feelings of being underappreciated and treated unfairly.

He has adopted a persistent belief that there are "Harvard boys'' who are involved in corruption and conspiracies related to politics and the justice system with "various judges being connected to the network.''

Another major focus of Kelly's litigation pertains to the town of Chelmsford taking some of Kelly's land to build a public utility station on it. His family reports that the amount of land was negligible and he was compensated. but he believes his rights were violated.