Pipe bomb attack in Suisun City was a hired hit on man’s brother, prosecutors say

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A federal grand jury indicted two men who allegedly planted a pipe bomb last month at the home of one of the men’s brothers in Suisun City.

Thomas Wayne Capenhurst, 33, of Dixon, and Robert Lee McGraw, 20, of Fairfield, were charged Thursday with conspiracy, malicious use of explosive materials and using a destructive device during a crime of violence. McGraw was also charged with possessing an unregistered destructive device.

Capenhurst allegedly offered to pay McGraw and another man $10,000 each to place pipe bombs at his brother’s house in Suisun City. Capenhurst gave McGraw three bombs and told him to “try to knock the house down,” according to the complaint.

On Feb. 17, McGraw allegedly walked to the front door of the home on Bluejay Drive just before 1 a.m., according to court documents. A family of five had just returned from a trip to the Bay Area and were active in the house.

McGraw allegedly set one of the pipe bombs on the front porch, lit the fuse, banged on the front door and ran. The bomb broke windows and blew the front door off its hinges, and shrapnel lodged into the home’s walls, according to the complaint.

No one was injured in the explosion and the remaining pipe bombs were defused by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.

A multi-agency investigation into the incident was led by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, the FBI’s Solano County Violent Crimes Task Force and the Suisun City Police Department. Seven other law enforcement agencies — police departments in Benicia, Dixon, Fairfield, Vacaville and Vallejo, the Solano County Sheriff’s Office, and the California Highway Patrol — provided assistance.

If convicted of using a destructive device during a crime of violence, Capenhurst and McGraw could face 30 years to life in prison, as well as a $250,000 fine. If found guilty of the other charges, the men could receive between five and 20 years in prison in addition to heavy fines.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Timothy H. Delgado is prosecuting the case.