150 Pipe Bombs Found At VA Man's Home, Largest Seizure In FBI History: Prosecutors

NORFOLK, VA — A Virginia man was arrested last month after authorities discovered more than 150 pipe bombs at his home near Norfolk, the largest number of explosive devices ever seized by the FBI, according to prosecutors.

Brad K. Spafford, 36, was arrested on Dec. 17, a week after federal prosecutors charged him with possessing an illegal unregistered short-barrel rifle.

According to court documents, while executing a search warrant at Spafford's 20-acre property in Isle of Wight County, FBI agents located a stockpile of homemade explosive devices in a detached garage on the property. Agents also found tools and materials used to make the devices, including homemade fuses and pieces of PVC pipe.

According to court documents, several additional pipe bombs were also found unsecured in a backpack inside the home Spafford shared with two young children. The backpack was labeled "#nolivesmatter,” an apparent reference to an extremist ideology that promotes anarchist violence and mass killings.

Prosecutors said Spafford also kept explosive material in a freezer in a jar labeled "Dangerous" and "Do Not Touch."

In court filings arguing that Spafford should remain in jail, prosecutors said he used pictures of President Joe Biden for target practice, expressed support for political assassinations and recently sought qualifications in sniper rifle shooting.

According to an FBI affidavit obtained by The Washington Post, an informant for the FBI “reported that Spafford and his friends are preparing for something that Spafford would not be able to do alone." The informant also said Spafford was making “approximately 50 rounds of ammunition per day" and discussed putting a 360-degree turret atop his property.

“Several weeks after the assassination attempt of then-Presidential candidate Donald Trump in Pennsylvania, the defendant stated that he hoped the shooter doesn’t miss ‘Kamala (Harris),’” according to the Post report citing court filings.

On Monday, a federal magistrate judge ruled that Spafford could be released to his mother's custody and placed under electronic monitoring. Prosecutors appealed the ruling, claiming he posed an "extreme danger" to the community.

Spafford will remain in jail until the appeal process concludes.