Salem Satanic Temple Bomber Sentenced To 5 Years In Prison

SALEM, MA — The Oklahoma man who pleaded guilty to charges of igniting a pipe bomb that damaged the Satanic Temple in Salem in April 2024 was sentenced to five years in prison and three years of supervised release.

Sean Patrick Palmer, 49, was also accused of leaving a six-page handwritten letter in the flower bed next to the temple and art gallery, saying he was sent to "smite" and "destroy" Satan and "maybe Salem too."

Salem police said an investigation determined the bomb was thrown at about 4 a.m. on April 8, 2024, and that the damage was not discovered until staff arrived at the Temple, which is also an art gallery, about 12 hours later.

• Salem Satanic Temple Pipe Bomb Suspect Pleads Guilty In Attack: DOJ

Perkins was charged five days later in Oklahoma.

No one was injured in what Salem Mayor Dominick Pangallo called "a terrorist attack."

Salem Police Chief Lucas Miller said on Friday that this investigation was a classic example of how law enforcement agencies from multiple jurisdictions work together to solve a complex crime.

"I am extremely proud of the initial response to the bombing by our Patrol Division and detectives from the Criminal Investigation Division (CID)," Miller said. "Their efforts laid the groundwork for the rapid identification and apprehension of the suspect and led to the successful prosecution of Palmer by federal authorities."

Court documents said surveillance cameras captured a man, subsequently identified as Palmer, walking towards the Temple wearing a black face covering, a tan-colored tactical vest and gloves. As Palmer approached TST, he ignited a pipe bomb, threw it at the main entrance, and then ran away.

The IED did not fully detonate. There was minor damage to the exterior of the building.

The pipe bomb was constructed from a roughly two-foot section of plastic pipe covered with metal nails attached to the pipe with duct tape. The inside of the pipe was filled with smokeless gunpowder.

The U.S. Attorney's Office said Palmer’s DNA was found on the outside of the IED.

He pleaded guilty in March to one count of using an explosive device and attempting to damage a building used in interstate or foreign commerce.