A 57-year-old American man who sent a series of parcel bombs to Democratic personalities and critics of US President Donald Trump was sentenced Monday in New York to 20 years in prison.
The mailings of these homemade bombs, for which Cesar Sayoc pleaded guilty in March, had sparked national concern, coupled with a massive police investigation throughout the US. "The nature and circumstances of these crimes are appalling," Judge Jed Rakoff said in delivering his verdict.
None of the packages had exploded
Cesar Sayoc, a resident of Florida, sent his parcels late October 2018 to fifteen anti-Trump personalities. Among those targeted were billionaire and philanthropist George Soros, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former President Barack Obama and former Vice President Joe Biden or New York actor Robert de Niro.
None of the packages had exploded or even reached the addressee. But specifically targeting the Democrats, they had raised the tension in the United States, in the middle of the election campaign for the mid-term elections of November 6.
An admirer of Donald Trump
Cesar Sayoc, who had a criminal record and lived in a truck covered with pro-Trump and anti-Democrat posters, was arrested in Florida five days after the first package was found in the mailbox of George's residence. Soros, north of New York.
As part of a large manhunt, the police found their fingerprints and DNA on the packages. The offender was initially charged with 30 counts, which made him incur life imprisonment. He had finally pleaded guilty to 65 charges, admitting that he had sent 16 package bombs to Democratic personalities.