Man gets prison in bomb case

The Daily Inter Lake

A 56-year-old Libby man was sentenced to 37 months in prison for a pipe bomb incident at the Three Rivers Ranger Station at Trout Creek in June 2006.

Stephen Neil Young pleaded guilty on April 6 to possessing an unregistered destructive device.

U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy sentenced him to three years of supervised release after he completes his prison term, which could be reduced by 15 percent for good behavior.

The pipe bomb was found on the ground where a Forest Service truck assigned to Young had been parked on June 1, according to court documents. Another employee had moved the truck from its original spot that morning.

Later that same morning, Young pointed out a suspicious item in the parking lot to a Forest Service law enforcement officer. It was the pipe bomb, on the ground where the truck had been parked. The officer secured it.

On June 2, the Missoula County Bomb Squad safely exploded the bomb. Court documents said it was found to be a functioning bomb, probably made from a low-explosive smokeless powder.

Officers searched the site and the Forest Service vehicle assigned to Young. They found three pieces of black electrical tape on the "Y" pipe of the truck's exhaust system.

Young was interviewed twice.

On June 1, he said he had been a certified blaster with the Forest Service and suggested several people who may have planted the bomb.

On June 2, he admitted assembling the bomb, describing in detail how he made it and placed it on the truck. He said he planned to kill himself, putting the bomb on the Forest Service truck instead of his own so his family could benefit from his life insurance policy.