Former Navy SEAL Gregory Vandenberg Sentenced to 16 Months for Explosives Plot Targeting Police

Gregory Vandenberg explosives plot No Kings protest antisemitic motive 16‑month sentence

Former U.S. Navy SEAL Gregory Vandenberg, 49, was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison and will serve one year of supervised release after transporting explosives intended for a "No Kings Day" protest in San Diego. While driving from El Paso, Texas, to San Diego in June 2025, he stopped at a travel center near Lordsburg, New Mexico, where he bought six large mortar‑style fireworks and 72 M‑150 firecrackers. He told the store clerk he planned to throw the devices at police officers, asked detailed questions about gunpowder and how to increase their force, and encouraged the clerk to attend the protest and distribute the fireworks.

Employees recorded his license‑plate and alerted authorities. Federal agents tracked Vandenberg to Davis‑Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona, where he was arrested while sleeping in his vehicle. A search of his car uncovered the fireworks and clothing bearing extremist symbols, including an Al‑Qaeda flag shirt, a shirt reading “AMALEK” (interpreted as “destroyer of Jews”), and other anti‑Israel imagery. A federal jury convicted him of transporting explosives with intent to kill, injure or intimidate, and of attempting to transport prohibited fireworks into California. Prosecutors said the plot was driven by extremist and antisemitic beliefs.

Entities

Al‑Qaeda flag shirt · Davis-Monthan Air Force Base · Davis‑Monthan Air Force Base · Gregory Vandenberg · Lordsburg, New Mexico · Lordsburg, New Mexico travel center · No Kings Day protest · U.S. Department of Justice

Claims

What the coverage asserts, and how many sources carry each claim.

[● 8 SOURCES] He was arrested while sleeping in his vehicle at Davis‑Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson, Arizona. internewscast.com · kvia.com · lawenforcementtoday.com · www.sofx.com · diario.mx · +2 more
[● 8 SOURCES] He purchased six mortar-style fireworks and 72 M‑150 firecrackers at a travel center near Lordsburg, New Mexico. internewscast.com · kvia.com · lawenforcementtoday.com · www.sofx.com · diario.mx · +2 more
[● 8 SOURCES] He was convicted of transporting explosives with intent to kill, injure or intimidate and attempted transportation of prohibited fireworks into California. internewscast.com · kvia.com · lawenforcementtoday.com · www.sofx.com · diario.mx · +2 more
[● 8 SOURCES] He will serve one year of supervised release after completing his prison term. internewscast.com · lawenforcementtoday.com · www.sofx.com · diario.mx · jewishpress.com · +2 more
[● 8 SOURCES] Gregory Vandenberg was sentenced to 16 months in federal prison. internewscast.com · kvia.com · lawenforcementtoday.com · www.sofx.com · diario.mx · +2 more
[● 8 SOURCES] The plot was motivated by extremist and antisemitic beliefs. internewscast.com · kvia.com · lawenforcementtoday.com · www.sofx.com · diario.mx · +2 more
[● 8 SOURCES] Search of his vehicle uncovered fireworks and clothing displaying extremist symbols, including a shirt bearing the Al‑Qaeda flag and a shirt reading “AMALEK.” internewscast.com · kvia.com · lawenforcementtoday.com · www.sofx.com · diario.mx · +2 more
[● 8 SOURCES] He intended to use the explosives against law‑enforcement officers during the June 14, 2025 “No Kings Day” protest in California. internewscast.com · kvia.com · lawenforcementtoday.com · www.sofx.com · diario.mx · +2 more