Tyler Hayes, a 43-year-old resident of Bennington, Vermont, has been sentenced to 50 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. The sentencing was delivered by United States District Judge Joseph LaPlante on June 24, 2025. Hayes was convicted earlier this year on February 13 for unlawfully possessing an unregistered bomb and possessing a bomb as an unlawful drug user.
Court records reveal that the bomb was found at Hayes’s former residence in Bennington shortly after he vacated the property in February 2023. The discovery was made by the property manager who then alerted law enforcement officials. Witnesses testified during the trial that Hayes had been discussing and constructing bombs over several months and had even attempted to trade a bomb for fentanyl. After the bomb’s discovery, witnesses reported that Hayes admitted to being “on the run.”
An explosives expert from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives provided testimony about the homemade bomb’s potential for destruction despite its rudimentary construction using a pipe bomb and flammable liquids in plastic bottles.
Hayes was found guilty of violating both the National Firearms Act (NFA) and the Gun Control Act (GCA). He faced potential sentences of up to ten years for the NFA violation and fifteen years for the GCA violation.
Acting United States Attorney Michael P. Drescher praised the efforts of multiple agencies involved in investigating this case: “the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives,” “Homeland Security Investigations,” “the Vermont State Police Explosive Ordnance Disposal Unit,” and “the Bennington Police Department.”
The prosecution team included Assistant U.S. Attorneys Corinne Smith and Nicole Cate. Defense attorneys James Valente and Chandler Matson represented Hayes.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), which aims to reduce violent crime through collaboration between law enforcement agencies and communities. The initiative emphasizes building trust within communities, supporting violence prevention organizations, setting strategic enforcement priorities, and measuring outcomes.
For more information about Project Safe Neighborhoods, visit Justice.gov/PSN.
