A Wisconsin man pleaded guilty today to the May 2022 firebombing of a Madison office building.
According to court documents, Hridindu Sankar Roychowdhury, 29, of Madison, pleaded guilty to attempting to cause damage using fire or an explosive.
On Sunday, May 8, 2022, at approximately 6:06 a.m., law enforcement responded to an active fire at an office building located in Madison. Once inside the building, police observed a mason jar under a broken window; the jar was broken, and the lid and screw top were burned black.
The police also saw a purple disposable lighter near the mason jar. On the opposite wall from the window, the police saw another mason jar with the lid on and a blue cloth tucked into the top; the cloth was singed.
The jar was about half full of a clear fluid that smelled like an accelerant. Outside of the building, someone spray painted on one wall, “If abortions aren’t safe then you aren’t either” and, on another wall, a large “A” with a circle around it and the number “1312.” During the investigation, law enforcement collected DNA from the scene of the attack.
In March 2023, law enforcement identified Roychowdhury as a possible suspect. Local police officers observed Roychowdhury dispose of food in a public trash can; the officers recovered the leftover food and related items, and law enforcement collected DNA from the food.
On March 17, law enforcement advised that a forensic biologist examine the DNA evidence recovered from the attack scene and compare it to the DNA collected from the food contents. The forensic biologist found the two samples matched and was likely the same individual.
In March, Roychowdhury traveled from Madison to Portland, Maine, and he purchased a one-way ticket from Boston to Guatemala City, departing on March 28. Law enforcement arrested Roychowdhury at Boston Logan International Airport that day.
Roychowdhury faces up to 20 years in prison.
A sentencing hearing is scheduled for Feb. 14.
The charge against Roychowdhury is the result of an investigation by the Madison Police Department, Wisconsin State Capitol Police Department, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF), the FBI’s Joint Terrorism Task Force, Homeland Security Investigations, and Dane County Sheriff’s Office, with the assistance of the FBI Boston Field Office, Boston Police Department, Massachusetts State Police, U.S. Coast Guard, Federal Air Marshal Service, and Transportation Security Administration.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Elizabeth Altman for the Western District of Wisconsin and Trial Attorney Justin Sher of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section are prosecuting the case.