The FBI has arrested a man after discovering what they described as the biggest stockpile of “finished explosive devices” in its history.

Brad Spafford was taken into custody at a farm outside Norfolk, Virginia, on a single count accusing him of illegally possessing an unregistered short-barrel rifle. But when agents searched his 20-acre property, they found a detached garage with more than 150 explosive devices inside.

Prosecutors said they mainly found pipe bombs, some of them labelled “lethal”. Several bombs were found loaded into a wearable vest, according to court papers. Agents discovered more in a bedroom inside Spafford’s house, loosely stuffed in a rucksack that had a patch shaped like a hand grenade and a logo reading “#NoLivesMatter”.

Pipe bombs similar to these were found at Virginia man’s farm

No Lives Matter is a nihilistic, far-right ideology that primarily exists on encrypted online messaging apps like Telegram. The group promotes “targeted attacks, mass killings and criminal activity” and has “historically encouraged members to engage in self-harm and animal abuse”.

Investigators said the bombs were “preliminarily assessed as the largest seizure by a number of finished explosive devices in FBI history”. Spafford had allegedly used photos of President Joe Biden for target practice and believed that “political assassinations should be brought back.”

According to the court papers, he had recently sought qualifications in sniper rifle shooting at a local range. Spafford’s charging document says an unnamed neighbour reported he had continued to build bombs even after losing three fingers on his right hand in 2021 “while working with a homemade explosive device”.

Investigators say the concerned man, who used to work in law enforcement, wore a recording device during a visit to Spafford’s home earlier this year. The evidence gathered by the neighbour led FBI agents to visit the farm. In addition to the bombs, the FBI said they found a jar of a highly volatile explosive called HMTD, which is so unstable it can be exploded merely by a temperature change and does not require a detonator to explode.

A neighbour told investigators Brad Spafford sometimes used photographs of President Biden for target practice at a local shooting range. (

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The jar of HMTD was labelled “Dangerous” and “Do Not Touch” and was being stored in a freezer next to food that was accessible to the children, according to the court papers. The neighbour also told investigators that Spafford had discussed fortifying the property with a turret for a 50-calibre firearm on the roof.

Spafford, who worked at a machine shop, had also said that missing children in the news had been taken by the federal government to be trained as school shooters, according to the court papers.

A lawyer for Mr Spafford said the government’s claim he was dangerous was “rank speculation and fear-mongering” because the suspect had no criminal record. “There is not a shred of evidence in the record that Mr Spafford ever threatened anyone, and the contention that someone might be in danger because of their political views and comments is nonsensical,” the attorney wrote.