Matthew Burgett, 25, of Blackfoot, pleaded guilty Monday in United States District Court to “unlawful possession of destructive devices” which authorities say Burgett designed for use as a weapon.
Burgett was indicted by a Pocatello grand jury on October 27, 2015.
According to a news release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Boise, on September 24, of last year, “law enforcement officers served search warrants at Burgett’s home and found several explosive devices -- including four assembled devices with a main charge container and a fusing system, as well as three partially-assembled devices and explosive material”.
Burgett admitted that the explosive devices were designed for use as a weapon, the release stated.
Additionally, at the time the search warrant was executed, Burgett had previously been involuntary committed to a mental institution and could not possess firearms.
Police found two guns in Burgett’s home.
The charge of unlawful possession of destructive devices is punishable by up to ten years in prison, up to a $250,000 fine, and up to three years of supervised release.
Burgett is scheduled to be sentenced on February 28, of next year at the federal courthouse in Pocatello.
The case was investigated by the Bingham County Sheriff’s Office, the Blackfoot Police Department, and the United States Department of Homeland Security Investigations, the FBI, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
