MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The FBI believes “a terror attack was disrupted” when authorities arrested a man after they converged on a mobile home in western Minnesota that contained Molotov cocktails, suspected pipe bombs and firearms, the agency said Monday.
Buford Rogers, 24, was arrested Friday and charged with one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. He remains in federal custody it is not immediately clear if he has an attorney.
In a news release Monday, the FBI said it believes “the lives of several local residents were potentially saved” by the search and arrest. The agency said the terror plot was discovered through analysis of intelligence gathered by local, state and federal authorities. The statement doesn’t offer further details about the extent or manner of the alleged plot.
“Cooperation between the FBI and its federal, state, and local partners enabled law enforcement to prevent a potential tragedy in Montevideo,” Christopher Warrener, the special agent in charge of the FBI office in Minneapolis, said in Monday’s release.
According to a federal affidavit obtained by The Associated Press on Friday, FBI agents from the domestic terrorism squad searched the property at the mobile home park in Montevideo and discovered the Molotov cocktails, suspected pipe bombs and firearms. The affidavit said Buford was there at the time of the search, and one firearm recovered from Buford’s residence was a Romanian AKM assault rifle.
In an interview with authorities, Rogers admitted firing the weapon on two separate occasions at a gun range in Granite Falls, the affidavit said. Rogers has a past conviction for felony burglary and is not allowed to have a firearm.
Rogers is expected to make his initial appearance in federal court this week.
Rogers’ 2011 felony burglary conviction stems from an incident in Lac qui Parle County. He also has a 2009 misdemeanor conviction for dangerous handling of a weapon in Hennepin County, as well as other criminal violations, according to online court records.
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