ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (KFOX14/CBS4) — The ex-Navy SEAL who was convicted of plotting to drive from El Paso to San Diego, California, to attack a “No King’s Day” protest with explosives has been sentenced.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Mexico, 49-year-old Gregory Vandenberg was sentenced to 16 months in prison without the chance of parole, as there is none in the federal system.
Vandenberg was convicted on January 12 of transportation of explosives with intent to kill, injure or intimidate and attempted transportation of prohibited fireworks.
At the time, the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of New Mexico said Vandenberg could be facing 10 years in prison.
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What happened?
According to court records, Vandenberg, again, driving from El Paso to Sandiego, stopped by a travel center off I-10 near Lordsburg, New Mexico, bought six large mortar fireworks– designed to shoot high into the air and explode– and 72 M-150 firecrackers, which, when they pop off, sound like gunfire; then told the clerk at the store that he planned to throw fireworks at police officers during the protests.
Vandenberg then asked detailed questions about the amount of gunpowder in the fireworks, their explosive impact, and their ability to harm others, and discussed taping multiple fireworks together to increase their explosiveness.
Vandenberg emphasized that he was not interested in the color or display of the fireworks but only in how they explode.
Furthermore, Vandenberg tried to convince the clerk to join him at the protests and discussed giving fireworks to others at the event and noted that he would not get hurt because he knew what he was doing.
Also, when buying the fireworks, Vandenberg told the cashier that he was not from the U.S. when they asked him for his ID and then asked if the store was going to track him.
Apparently, Vandenberg’s behavior and questions raised red flags with the employees and they recorded his license plates and called authorities.
Afterward, federal agents tracked Vandenberg to Tucson, Arizona, and arrested him the following morning while he was sleeping in his car at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base.
Vandenberg initially claimed to be traveling for work– despite being unemployed– and then later switched his story, claiming he was visiting friends in Phoenix that weekend.
When authorities searched his vehicle, they described finding the purchased fireworks, clothes with antisemitic, anti-Israel, and extremist symbols—including a t-shirt with an image of the Al-Qaeda flag, another t-shirt calling for the destruction of Judea.
Investigators also noted that the t-shirt Vandenberg wore spelled “AMALEK” in large letters on the front—a t-shirt that Vandenberg had specially made and that he said meant: “destroyer of Jews.”
Clothing with antisemitic, anti-Israel, and extremist symbols found in Vandenberg’s vehicle. Credit: DOJ
Meanwhile, on Vandenberg’s phone, authorities said they found “violent and extremist content, including antisemitic, anti-Israel and anti-U.S. materials” as well as texts where he talked about upcoming protests and his unfavorable views of President Trump because he thought the U.S. government was being controlled by Israel.
The Department of Justice described Vandenberg as a man without stable employment who lives out of his car, who has made several statements demonstrating his knowledge of explosives and experience in special forces.
Following news of Vandenberg’s conviction, the Acting U.S. Attorney Ryan Ellison wrote a statement clarifying that while people can express themselves freely, they cannot intimidate or hurt others because of them.
“People in this country are free to hold their own beliefs and to express them peacefully,” said Ellison. “What they are not free to do is use explosives to threaten or terrorize others. Vandenberg intended to turn explosives into a tool of intimidation, and this verdict sends the message that attempts to substitute violence for expressing one’s opinion has no place in our communities and will be met with federal consequences.”
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