Massachusetts man charged after allegedly triggering explosion in his Chicago dorm

BOSTON (AP) — A Massachusetts man has been charged with engaging in a scheme to cover up efforts to develop bomb-making skills after triggering an explosion last year in his dorm at the University of Chicago, federal investigators said Thursday.

Aram Brunson, 21, of Newton, is also charged with making false statements to federal officials at Logan International Airport after his bags set off alarms for explosives, according to a criminal complaint filed in federal court in Boston.

Prosecutors said Brunson’s bomb-making activities were linked to his desire to take militant action against Azerbaijanis and others who pose a threat to ethnic Armenians living in the disputed territory of Nagorno-Karabakh.

Investigators believe Brunson is currently living in Yerevan, Armenia, and attending the American University there. The U.S. Attorney’s Office did not immediately respond to a query about whether Brunson has a lawyer who could speak on his behalf.

Brunson came to the attention of law enforcement officials in Chicago in January 2023, after allegedly causing an explosion in his room.

Investigators said Brunson was building a large black powder device when he accidentally set it off, burning his room and causing the evacuation of the dormitory. They said Brunson told police he was trying to mimic a prank he saw on the internet.

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Brunson also made videos of himself teaching others how to make explosive devices and rig doors and desks with grenades, according to investigators. Brunson’s internet searches suggested he planned to take action against foreign diplomatic facilities in the United States, they said.

As Brunson was leaving Boston to travel to Armenia in August, 2023, his bags set off explosive alarms for an unusual and highly volatile explosive, according to court documents, and Brunson told Customs and Border Protection officials he had no idea how traces of the material wound up on his bags.

During a subsequent search of his Newton home, a recipe for making the explosive was found and a bomb dog detected the substance at three locations in the bedroom, according to investigators.

“While radical political views may be offensive, they are constitutionally protected. However, experimenting with extremely dangerous explosives in support of those views and then engaging in false statements about your conduct is crossing the line,” Acting United States Attorney Joshua Levy said.

Efforts have been made to encourage Brunson to return to the United States to meet with agents, but he has declined through a representative, according to the criminal complaint.

Each of the charges provides for a sentence of up to five years in prison, three years of supervised release and a fine of up to $250,000.