I gotta ask..how does one engage in multiple felonies while at the same time posting things on social media that are guaranteed to draw attention to them--and expect not to get caught?
An ex-corporal with the Ohio Army National Guard was sentenced Tuesday to nearly six years in prison after authorities said he created ghost guns and made antisemitic and violent statements online while employed to provide security services at synagogues and Jewish schools.
Thomas Develin, 25, of Columbus, was sentenced Tuesday at U.S. District Court in Columbus to five years and 11 months in prison on federal weapons counts, online court records show.
Later that day, DeVelin appeared a few blocks away in Franklin County Common Pleas Court and pleaded guilty to different charges: two counts of making terroristic threats and one count of attempted illegal manufacturing or possession of explosives.
In October, Develin pleaded guilty to the crimes and admitted in a plea agreement he created ghost guns to sell for profit. He also made and possessed homemade conversion devices to convert semi-automatic AR-15 rifles and Glock-type pistols into fully automatic machine guns, court records in the U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of Ohio show. Develin admitted he made and sold firearms that he knew were illegal.
Court records show Develin advertised online he possessed and was selling 3D-printed sears, which are devices designed to convert AR-type rifles into fully automatic rifles. Devices that are intended to convert semiautomatic firearms into fully automatic firearms are considered machine guns under federal law, according to an October release from the attorney's office. Other messages on Develin’s phone said he created a two-handed firearm with an overall length under 26 inches, which is illegal.
Agents discovered night vision goggles, ballistic plates, a ballistic helmet, first aid equipment, and a large quantity of ammunition including several loaded magazines in Develin's vehicle on March 31, 2022, the day he was arrested.
Among other threats he made in a private online group chat filled with other Ohio Guardsmen, DeVelin posted multiple times about his desire to shoot up a Columbus Jewish school and two synagogues where he worked as a security guard, according to court documents in the federal case against DeVelin.
A post at a synagogue where Develin worked security at the time suggested he might join in if there were an active shooter there, according to an Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives affidavit in the federal case. In others, he said he would start shooting at a Jewish school or called for violence against Black people and women.
U.S. District Court Judge Sarah D. Morrison said during the sentencing hearing that DeVelin has not disavowed the hatred he expressed in his online posts about killing Jews or others. He just said he would not have acted on his ideas, the judge said.
Morrison said DeVelin has downplayed his messages as "private," "funny," and how he "dealt with stress."
"(I have heard) nothing indicating that it wasn't Mr. DeVelin's true beliefs. It's very very concerning," Morrison said while sentencing him.
An ex-corporal with the Ohio Army National Guard was sentenced Tuesday to nearly six years in prison after authorities said he created ghost guns and made antisemitic and violent statements online while employed to provide security services at synagogues and Jewish schools.
Thomas Develin, 25, of Columbus, was sentenced Tuesday at U.S. District Court in Columbus to five years and 11 months in prison on federal weapons counts, online court records show.
Later that day, DeVelin appeared a few blocks away in Franklin County Common Pleas Court and pleaded guilty to different charges: two counts of making terroristic threats and one count of attempted illegal manufacturing or possession of explosives.
In October, Develin pleaded guilty to the crimes and admitted in a plea agreement he created ghost guns to sell for profit. He also made and possessed homemade conversion devices to convert semi-automatic AR-15 rifles and Glock-type pistols into fully automatic machine guns, court records in the U.S. Attorney’s Office Southern District of Ohio show. Develin admitted he made and sold firearms that he knew were illegal.
Court records show Develin advertised online he possessed and was selling 3D-printed sears, which are devices designed to convert AR-type rifles into fully automatic rifles. Devices that are intended to convert semiautomatic firearms into fully automatic firearms are considered machine guns under federal law, according to an October release from the attorney's office. Other messages on Develin’s phone said he created a two-handed firearm with an overall length under 26 inches, which is illegal.
Agents discovered night vision goggles, ballistic plates, a ballistic helmet, first aid equipment, and a large quantity of ammunition including several loaded magazines in Develin's vehicle on March 31, 2022, the day he was arrested.
Among other threats he made in a private online group chat filled with other Ohio Guardsmen, DeVelin posted multiple times about his desire to shoot up a Columbus Jewish school and two synagogues where he worked as a security guard, according to court documents in the federal case against DeVelin.
A post at a synagogue where Develin worked security at the time suggested he might join in if there were an active shooter there, according to an Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives affidavit in the federal case. In others, he said he would start shooting at a Jewish school or called for violence against Black people and women.
U.S. District Court Judge Sarah D. Morrison said during the sentencing hearing that DeVelin has not disavowed the hatred he expressed in his online posts about killing Jews or others. He just said he would not have acted on his ideas, the judge said.
Morrison said DeVelin has downplayed his messages as "private," "funny," and how he "dealt with stress."
"(I have heard) nothing indicating that it wasn't Mr. DeVelin's true beliefs. It's very very concerning," Morrison said while sentencing him.
