The man authorities said set off a bomb in Colonial Williamsburg in 2017 pleaded guilty in the U.S. District Court in Norfolk Friday to the three charges against him.
Stephen James Powers, 31, pleaded guilty to two counts of possession of illegal destructive devices and to making a false statement to investigators, according to a court case manager.
Powers did not enter into a plea deal with prosecutors, meaning his punishment depends on a judge, said Keith Loren Kimball, Powers’ attorney.
For the first two counts, Powers could get 10 years each and then an additional five years for the count of false statement, Kimball said.
He will be sentenced on May 2 at 11 a.m. at the U.S. District Court in Norfolk, according to the court’s clerk.
Powers was arrested after an improvised explosive device was detonated on Oct. 19, 2017 in a parking lot behind Berret’s Seafood near Colonial Williamsburg.
According to the criminal complaint, the bomb appeared to have been placed under a bed of mulch where three trees were decorated with lights and brown wiring. One of the wires was plugged into the lights and frayed on the other end.
The FBI suspected Powers after they linked him to a series of notes that were found at the scene of the explosion in days prior to the incident. They investigated him at his home in Gloucester and arrested him on Oct. 20, 2017.
Powers was originally charged with using a fake weapon for a terror act and possession of an explosive device after materials used to make a pipe bomb were found in his home during a search.
Powers also told agents his credit card had been stolen to make a $120 purchase on Oct. 16, 2017. However, investigators found video of Powers using the stolen credit card at a Bass Pro Shop in Hampton where he bought three plastic jars of “Benchmark Smokeless” powder.
The case was moved from state court to the federal courts after prosecutors dropped the charges in May, 2018 so that the Eastern District of Virginia could pursue the case.
