Rock Springs Men Sentenced in Pipe Bomb Case

Acting U.S. Attorney for the District of Wyoming Nicholas Vassallo announced that 51-year-old Spencer Cottrell, 39-year-old Bryan Foster and 31-year-old Gage Mercer, all of Rock Springs, WY, have been sentenced in federal court by U.S. District Court Judge Alan B. Johnson for crimes related to improvised pipe bombs. Cottrell was also sentenced for distributing methamphetamine.

According to court records, on February 14, 2021, the Rock Springs Police Department attempted to stop Cottrell for a traffic violation. After police activated their lights, Cottrell attempted to flee but crashed his truck into a snowbank. A subsequent search of Cottrell’s truck revealed an improvised pipe bomb. Further investigation revealed that Cottrell’s cousin, Bryan Foster, made four pipe bombs for Cottrell. Authorities searched Foster’s residence and recovered a second pipe bomb. The remaining two pipe bombs were recovered at the residence of Gage Mercer, who had taken the bombs from Cottrell’s residence just after Cottrell’s arrest on February 14.

Mercer pled guilty to unlawful possession of pipe bombs and was sentenced by Judge Johnson to 35 months in prison with three years of supervised release to follow. Mercer was also ordered to pay a $500 fine and $100 special assessment. Cottrell pled guilty to unlawful possession of a pipe bomb and distribution of methamphetamine and was sentenced by Judge Johnson to a total of 121 months in prison with four years of supervised release to follow. Cottrell was also ordered to pay $500 in community restitution and a $200 special assessment.

Foster pled guilty to unlawful making of a pipe bomb and was sentenced by Judge Johnson to 36 months in prison with three years of supervised release to follow. Foster was also ordered to pay a $100 special assessment. These crimes were investigated by the Rock Springs Police Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation with assistance from Sweetwater County Joint EOD Team and the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation.