Saturday, February 06, 2010

Watervliet Man Sentenced for Manufacturing Explosive Materials

February 6, 2010 - ALBANY, NY—United States Attorney Richard S. Hartunian and John F. Pikus, Special Agent in Charge of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Albany Division, announced that AARON SCORSONE, age 19, of Watervliet, New York, was sentenced today by U.S. District Court Judge Lawrence E. Kahn to serve 31 months in federal prison, after which he must serve three years of supervised release. The sentence was imposed following SCORSONE’S April 15, 2009 guilty plea in which he admitted participating in a conspiracy to manufacture and deal explosive materials in violation of Title 18, United States Code, Sections 371, 842(a) and 844; as well as a conspiracy to possess and transfer destructive devices without complying with applicable Treasury Department regulations in violation of Title 26, United States Code, Sections 5811, 5812, 5861(e) and 5871.

In connection with his plea, SCORSONE admitted the following:

On one occasion in late September, 2008, and on another separate occasion in mid-November, 2008, he and Jonathan Plunkett agreed to sell four home-made explosive devices to an informant. The devices were obtained from between 40 to 50 home-made explosive devices (without fragmentation) that Scorsone had previously purchased from Scott A. Monroe. The sale price for the first explosive device was $10.00 and the three additional explosive devices were sold for $30.00 each.

On one occasion in early October, 2008, and on another separate occasion in late October, 2008, Jonathan Plunkett and SCORSONE agreed to sell eight additional home-made explosive devices to the informant. These eight devices were composed of the same materials and components as the device previously sold to the informant, however, these devices also contained hundreds of metal BBs fastened by glue to the exterior of the devices, thereby constituting fragmentation. The sale price for the explosive devices with fragmentation was set at $30.00 per device.

The following agencies provided significant assistance to the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force during the course of the investigation: The NYPD Intelligence Division - Operation Sentry, the United States Secret Service, the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms, the United States Postal Inspection Service, the New York State Police, the Troy Police Department, the Watervliet Police Department, the Albany Police Department, the North Greenbush Police Department, the Schenectady County District Attorney’s Office, and the Colonie Police Department.

The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Rick Belliss, who can be reached at (518) 431-0247.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

What a waste of taxpayers money and police time. It was found they were not out to hurt anyone and the word terrorist did not apply to them. They should have just recieved probation for doing something stupid and they would have learned their lesson. Murderers are receiving less time.

Unknown said...

I knew Aaron, i went to school with him and no i dont agree with the only other comment on here. Yea i dont think he was the next timothy mcveight but with all the heroin issues its easy to jail the dealer but im sorry he was a manufacturer and distributor of "potentially" lethal explosives. And obviously i am being sarcastic. I am proud to be a combat medic in the Army and i know the damage that a simple IED can do regardless domestic terrorism is as unfortunate and widespread as ever, in the countries history. 3 years (and i remember back in 2011 when i heard about his arrest) is a easy sentence for this. Look at every example of domestic terrorism... The Federal Bureau of Investigation did a great job finding him in cooperation with other law enforcement agencies. The kid was always a punk in school belittling others and was always involved in drugs. Do i believe hed plant a bomb .. Shit idk. Maybe not but like i said a heroin manufacturer and distributer is just as much to blame if not more than a small time dealer. Shit he couldve sold the bombs to the Boston marathon bombers if local and federal agencies didnt excel in their craft. I just hope he has learned it may have been a stupid mistake... But with his well known support of Al-Quaida and hatred of America... Maybe just maybe the judicial system caught and put him in check early enough to stop a fuckin massacre(being that he planned on buying an assault rifle. Good job 'murica keep this shit off the streets. This is exactly why i became a soldier so i can defend you people who think 3 yrs is too high of a price to pay for distribution to potential terrorists.