Tyler Hayes, Bomb Possession, Vermont 2024

Rutland, Vermont – A Bennington man has been convicted of possessing a homemade bomb, following a jury trial in U.S. District Court in Rutland.

According to court records and evidence presented at trial, a bomb was discovered in Hayes’s former Bennington residence days after he abandoned the property in February of 2023.

The property manager contacted law enforcement, who 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.

Other witnesses described Hayes making admissions after the bomb was discovered, including that he was “on the run” after a bomb had been found at his residence.

An explosives expert from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives testified that, although the homemade bomb was rudimentary and simplistic (constructed from a combination of a pipe bomb and flammable liquids stored in plastic water bottles), it was nonetheless capable of causing substantial destruction and injury had it been detonated.

The jury convicted Hayes of possessing an unregistered destructive device, in violation of the National Firearms Act (“NFA”), and of possessing a destructive device while being an unlawful user of a controlled substance, in violation of the Gun Control Act (“GCA”).

Hayes faces up to 10 years in prison on the NFA violation, and up to 15 years on the GCA violation. The actual sentence will be determined by the judge with reference to the Federal Sentencing Guidelines and the statutory sentencing factors.

“Yesterday’s guilty verdict in Rutland reflects not only the investigative skill of agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives and Homeland Security Investigations, but also the work of an extraordinary team of prosecutors and support staff from this office,” stated Acting United States Attorney Michael P. Drescher.

The prosecutors are Assistant United States Attorneys Corinne Smith and Nicole Cate. Hayes is represented by James Valente, Esq., and Chandler Matson, Esq.

This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities they serve to reduce violent crime and gun violence, and to make our neighborhoods safer for everyone.

Related Federal Cases