verdicoin|Michigan man accused of making explosives to target Satanic Temple in Massachusetts

2025-05-04 23:30:37source:Esthen Exchangecategory:Scams

GRAND RAPIDS,verdicoin Mich. (AP) — A Michigan man carrying explosives traveled to Massachusetts in 2023 and later said he wanted to blow up a building in Salem known as the Satanic Temple, according to a federal indictment.

Luke Terpstra was charged in western Michigan with two felonies: transportation of an explosive and possession of an unregistered explosive.

“Building explosive devices and transporting them with the intent to injure civilians and damage property puts us all at risk,” U.S. Attorney Mark Totten said Wednesday.

The indictment was filed Tuesday. Terpstra, 30, of Grant, Michigan, is being held in the Newaygo County jail on related state charges. He faces a hearing in federal court next Monday.

The court file doesn’t list an attorney yet who could speak for Terpstra.

The Satanic Temple in Salem says it doesn’t believe in Satan but describes itself as a “non-theistic religious organization” that supports secularism. There is an art gallery at the site.

Terpstra had an explosive device, multiple firearms and ammunition when he traveled to Salem in September, the indictment says. The indictment doesn’t mention an alleged motive. No violent acts occurred.

READ MORE Lawyers’ coalition provides new messengers for Black voter engagementHaley won 1 in 5 Indiana Republican voters in the presidential primary. She left the race in MarchIn the NIL landscape, schools are turning to companies to train and manage in-house general managers

“It is terrifying that he walked in our midst planning such violence,” Salem officials said in January when local authorities in Michigan filed the initial charges.

In April, a man from Oklahoma threw a pipe bomb at the main entrance of the Satanic Temple, causing a minor fire and other damage, according to federal authorities. A handwritten note found nearby referred to a fight against “crybaby Satan.”

More:Scams

Recommend

Car bomb kills senior Russian general in Moscow: Officials

LONDON -- A car bomb in Moscow has killed a senior Russian military officer, Russian officials said.

Bioluminescent waves light up Southern California's coastal waters

Los Angeles — In Southern California, people are flocking to the water for what may be one of the ho

Co-worker: Rex Heuermann once unnerved her by tracking her down on a cruise: I told you I could find you anywhere

Not far from a quiet stretch of Gilgo Beach on Long Island, New York, investigators uncovered the hi