A Perkins, Oklahoma man who pleaded guilty to throwing a pipe bomb at the Satanic Temple in Salem in April, United States Attorney Leah Foley’s office said Thursday.
U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani sentenced Sean Patrick Palmer, 49, to five years in prison, followed by three years of supervised release. Palmer pleaded guilty to one count of using an explosive device to damage and attempt to damage a building used in interstate or foreign commerce.
Palmer was caught on a surveillance camera on April 8 around 4:14 a.m. walking toward the temple wearing a black face covering, a tan-colored tactical vest and gloves, Foley’s office said in a statement.
Palmer lit up a pope bomb as he approached the temple and threw it at the main entrance before he ran away, the statement read. The bomb did not fully detonate and left minor damage to the building.
The improvised explosive device (IED) was made from a roughly 2-foot section of plastic pipe covered with metal nails attached to the pipe with duct tape, Foley’s office said. Investigators found Palmer’s DNA on the outside of the IED.
Near the temple in a flower bed, a six-page handwritten note by Palmer was found by investigators. It read:
“DEAR SATANIST ELOHIM SEND ME 7 MONTHS AGO TO GIVE YOU PEACEFUL MESSAGE TO HOPE YOU REPENT. YOU SAY NO, ELOHIM NOW SEND ME TO SMITE SATAN AND I HAPPY TO OBEY. AND ELOHIM WANT ME TO CONTACT YOU TO TELL YOU REPENT. TURN FROM SIN. ELOHIMNO LIKE THIS PLACE AND PLAN TO DESTROY IT. MAYBE SALEM TOO? ELOHIM SEND ME TO FIGHT CRY BABY SATAN, BUT WANT ME TO MAKE HARD EFFORT SO NO ONE DIES. I OBEY.”
Palmer was charged on April 17 after he was found by law enforcement in Perkins.
