MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A militia member indicted in what the FBI once characterized as a terror plot to blow up a west-central Minnesota police station pleaded guilty Friday to weapons charges.
Buford Braden Rogers, 25, of Montevideo, pleaded guilty in U.S. District Court to one count of possessing a firearm illegally and one count of possessing an unregistered destructive device, namely "two black powder and nail devices," which he admitted he made himself.
Two other counts, including charges related to possessing two Molotov cocktails and a pipe bomb, are expected to be dismissed at sentencing.
Prosecutors intend to seek upwards of five years in prison at sentencing, while the defense plans to ask for less than the lowest suggested guideline of 41 months.
Assistant Federal Defender Andrew Mohring noted that despite the initial publicity in the case, Rogers is not charged with terrorism, and he argued his client should be released pending sentencing.
He also said releasing Rogers would correct an "injustice" in the case, saying Rogers has been in segregated custody since evidence was made public that raised speculation about his connection to other cases.
Mohring did not get into specifics but a redacted transcript of Rogers' May 3 interview with the FBI, which was made public last month, suggests a possible connection between Rogers and another Minnesota militia member facing federal charges.
U.S. District Judge Ann Montgomery said Rogers would remain in custody "whether the history of this case has been overblown or not.
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