Antifa supporter charged with attempted bombing of Alabama attorney general's office
An Antifa activist has been indicted for his involvement in detonating an explosive device at the office of the Alabama attorney general, facing up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
Kyle Benjamin Douglas Calvert, a 26-year-old resident of Irondale, was arrested Wednesday and charged with malicious use of an explosive and possessing an unregistered destructive device.
“The Justice Department has no tolerance for acts of violence targeting those who serve the public,” said U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland in a statement released Wednesday.
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“Thanks to the work of the FBI and our state and local law enforcement partners, this defendant is being held accountable for allegedly detonating an explosive device outside of the Alabama Attorney General’s Office.”
Court documents show that on Feb. 24, around 3:40 a.m., an explosive device was detonated outside of the Alabama Attorney General's office in Montgomery. No injuries were reported.
The government considers Calvert a risk to public safety and is moving to detain him throughout the litigation, according to the Birmingham-based WBRC Fox 6 News.
Court records indicate that Calvert is affiliated with the far-left activist movement Antifa and has a history of mental health issues. A former employer labeled him “borderline unstable,” reported WBRC.
Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall released a statement saying that he and his staff “are breathing a collective sigh of relief this morning knowing that this individual has been taken off the streets.”
“Although more information will be provided in the weeks to come, I think it is safe to say that this was not a random act of violence,” Marshall added. “We are grateful to our federal and local partners for their assistance in this matter and are pleased that the offender faces federal charges carrying significant prison time.”
The attack came shortly after the Alabama Supreme Court ruled in the case of James LePage and Emily LePage et al. v. The Center for Reproductive Medicine that frozen embryos were legally protected by Alabama's Wrongful Death of a Minor Act.
In response to the decision made the day before the attack, Marshall stated that he had no intentions of using the state high court decision to prosecute IVF providers or families.
Regarding a possible link between the case and the explosive device, Marshall spokesperson Amanda Priest told media at the time “not to jump to conclusions about a specific issue.”
