Christopher Dean Nichols, Pipe Bomb Conspiracy, OK 2023

A Sapulpa man has been locked up for building and planting pipe bombs with the intent to terrorize. Christopher Dean Nichols, 23, was sentenced to 44 months in federal prison by District Judge John W. Dowdell after pleading guilty to Conspiracy to Unlawfully Manufacture and Possess Destructive Devices. The sentence includes a $100 special monetary assessment and two years of supervised release following his prison term.

Between May 20 and May 23, 2017, Nichols conspired with an accomplice to assemble crude but deadly explosive devices using materials purchased at a local hardware store. The bombs were constructed using threaded pipe, explosive powder, fuses, and BBs intended to turn the devices into shrapnel-spewing projectiles. None were registered, and all were built and possessed illegally under federal law.

Authorities say Nichols planted the pipe bombs inside a parked vehicle at the Creek County Courthouse without the owner’s knowledge. The target was not harmed, but the intent was clear: to scare, intimidate, and inject terror into a public space. Investigators believe the act was linked to court-related tensions, though no direct threat was made prior to the bombing.

“If you chose to make a pipe bomb and terrorize citizens in our communities, you will be held accountable,” declared United States Attorney Shores. “Let it be clear, we will not tolerate attempts to thwart courtroom processes — be they civil or criminal, federal or state — by threats and intimidation with improvised explosive devices.”

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives led the investigation, with critical support from the Sapulpa Police Department and the Tulsa Police Department Bomb Squad. The swift response prevented further danger and brought Nichols into custody before additional devices could be deployed.

Assistant United States Attorney Allen J. Litchfield prosecuted the case, underscoring the federal government’s zero-tolerance stance on homemade explosives. Nichols’ conviction serves as a stark warning: backyard bomb-making isn’t experimentation — it’s terrorism, and it will be treated as such.

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