A 57-year-old former pizza delivery man from Florida has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for posting 16 pipe bombs to 13 critics of President Donald Trump last October.
Cesar Sayoc pleaded guilty to 65 charges, including using weapons of mass destruction and mailing explosives with intent to kill. His targets included former President Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, former Vice-President Joe Biden, and several other high-profile Democrats and media figures.
All the devices were intercepted and none detonated; investigators reported that they lacked a mechanism to set them off. The incidents caused widespread alarm just weeks before the US mid-term elections.
At his sentencing, Sayoc expressed remorse, saying he was 'beyond so very sorry' and that he was 'a sick man' suffering from steroid abuse and conspiracy theories. His lawyers argued he had learning disabilities and childhood abuse, and that his fixation on President Trump combined with cognitive deficiencies led to his actions.
Prosecutors had sought a life sentence, describing Sayoc's motivation as a 'hate-filled ideology'.
