Bennington Bomber Sentenced For Possessing A Homemade Bomb
Friday, June 27, 2025, 7:00 A.M. ET. 2 Minute Read, By Art Fletcher: Englebrook Independent News,
BURLINGTON, VT.- A 43-year-old Bennington, Vermont, man will be spending over the next four years in federal prison after being sentenced on Tuesday in Federal Court in Burlington, Vermont, for possessing a homemade bomb while under the influence of illicit narcotics.
According to Acting U.S. Attorney Michael P. Drescher, on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, Tyler Hayes, 43, of Bennington, Vermont, appeared in the U.S. District Court for the District of Vermont and was sentenced by U.S. District Court Judge Joseph LaPlante to 50 months in federal prison, to be followed by three years of supervised for his February 2025, conviction of federal explosives violations.
Hayes Convicted In February 2025 Of Federal Charges
On February 13, 2025, following a five-day trial, Hayes was found guilty by a federal jury of Unlawfully Possessing an Unregistered Explosive Device; and Possessing an Explosive Device as an Unlawful Drug User.
According to evidence and testimony presented at trial, a bomb was discovered at Hayes’ former Bennington, Vermont, residence just days after he abandoned the property in February 2023. The property manager notified local Police Officers, who successfully defused the bomb. Witnesses at trial described how Hayes had been discussing and constructing bombs for months, and had offered to trade a bomb for fentanyl.
Witnesses Testified At Trial That Hayes Discussed Bombs
Other witnesses described Hayes telling them after the bomb was discovered, including that he was “on the run” after the bomb had been found at his home. An explosives expert from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives testified that, although the homemade bomb was not sophisticated in nature, it was constructed as a pipe bomb from a combination of flammable liquids stored in a plastic water bottles, it was nonetheless capable of causing substantial destruction and injury had it been detonated.
Acting U.S.Attorney Drescher commended the investigative work of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, Homeland Security Investigations, the Vermont State Police, and the Bennington Police Department, which resulted in the successful prosecution of Hayes.
