PHILADELPHIA, Pa. | The man accused of bringing a pipe bomb inside the emergency room at a Lehigh County hospital in the fall of last year has been indicted.
He's now facing charges that could put him behind bars for decades.
44-year-old Brian James Kunsmann, of Philadelphia, is now facing one count of possession of an unregistered destructive device and one count of being a felon in possession of an explosive.
It all stems from an incident that could have had deadly consequences. In October 2021, Kunsmann was in a car accident and transported to St. Luke's University Hospital in Fountain Hill. That's when an attending nurse discovered what was reported to be a pipe bomb in his backpack while he was being treated.
The hospital emergency room was evacuated for a two-hour period, as all incoming trauma patients had to be diverted to other hospitals. Thankfully the device never went off.
In a statement, U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams says "homemade explosive devices pose a grave threat to the general public when in the wrong hands and bringing one into the emergency department of a hospital - an enclosed space where people are receiving acute medical care- is especially dangerous."
If convicted, Kunsmann faces up to 20 years in prison and a $260,000 fine.
He's scheduled to make his first appearance in federal court on these charges on Jan. 24.
