Man sentenced to nine years for setting off bomb outside Alabama attorney general’s office

Photos from U.S. District Court, Middle District of Alabama

The man who pleaded guilty to setting off a bomb outside of the office of Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has been sentenced to nine years in federal prison. There is no parole in the federal judicial system.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office says 27-year-old Kyle Benjamin Douglas Calvert, of Irondale was sentenced today for the malicious use of an explosive device.

“Kyle Calvert attacked the Alabama Attorney General’s Office with a shrapnel-filled explosive and then fled the scene, but this sentence ensures he will not escape accountability for his crime,” said Attorney General Merrick B. Garland. “Acts of violence like this one against our public institutions endanger public servants and entire communities, and they must not be tolerated. I am grateful to the FBI, ATF, and our state and local law enforcement partners for ensuring accountability for this attack, and

According to the plea agreement and other court documents, Calvert set off the bomb during the early morning hours of February 24 near the intersection of Washington Avenue and South Bainbridge Street. No injuries were reported.

Calvert admitted during the plea hearing to making the device using nails and screws as shrapnel and accelerants to cause an explosion, according to the U.S. Attorney.

Prior to planting the device, Calvert placed stickers on various downtown buildings which had graphics advocating for various political ideologies, the U.S. Attorney said. Some stickers included the phrase “Support your local antifa.”

As reflected in the plea agreement, Calvert claims he has no affiliation with antifa.

Law enforcement arrested Calvert on April 10, 2024.

• Information from the Office of the U.S. Attorney Middle District of Alabama