Department of Justice

ALBUQUERQUE – Ethan Guillen, 20, of Albuquerque, N.M., pleaded guilty in federal court yesterday to charges stemming from an incident in 2017 where he entered his former girlfriend’s home without permission and planted a bomb underneath her bed.

A grand jury previously indicted Guillen for possession of an unregistered destructive device and malicious attempt to destroy property by means of fire or explosives. According to court documents, Guillen entered his former girlfriend’s apartment home on May 18, 2017. The victim and her family were away from home attending a graduation. Guillen secretly placed an improvised explosive device under the victim’s bed consisting of a pressure cooker with black powder, napalm, and shrapnel such as nuts, and bolts inside. Guillen connected the device to a timer and electrical outlet. He set the device to explode early the next morning. However, the device did not explode as scheduled. Several days later, the victim found the device under her bed. The victim’s mother partially disassembled the device and alerted police.

Guillen is currently in custody pending sentencing at a future date. The offense of possession of the unregistered destructive device carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, while Guillen’s attempt to destroy property carries a sentence of from 5 to 20 years in prison.

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives investigated this case with assistance from the Albuquerque Police Department. Assistant U.S. Attorneys Howard R. Thomas and David M. Walsh are prosecuting the case.