Appeals Court Upholds Conviction of Massachusetts Man Who Obtained Grenades and Weapons As Part Of Murder Plot

            CONCORD- The First Circuit Court of Appeals has upheld the conviction of a former resident of Malden, Massachusetts who raised multiple challenges to his conviction for obtaining weapons and grenades as part of a plot to kill his ex-wife’s husband, a federal judge in Boston, and a former Massachusetts Attorney General.

            Edward McLarnon, 72, was found guilty by a jury following six-day trial in January of 2018.  Evidence presented at trial showed that in October of 2015, McLarnon made contact with a person he believed to be an arms dealer (who was actually an undercover FBI agent) for the purpose of buying illegal weapons.  McLarnon negotiated with the undercover agent at a store in Chichester, New Hampshire and paid a total of $700 in cash to obtain the weapons.  On November 6, 2015, the defendant took possession of a .22 caliber pistol with a silencer, an AK-47-style semi-automatic rifle, ammunition, and two hand grenades containing high explosives at a rest stop in Seabrook.  He was taken into custody shortly after taking possession of these items.  The evidence further showed that McLarnon intended to use the weapons to kill his ex-wife's husband, as well as a Boston federal judge, and a former Massachusetts Attorney General.  

            The First Circuit rejected all of McLarnon’s arguments on appeal and affirmed his conviction.  He is serving a 300-month prison sentence. 

            “This defendant’s dangerous plot could have resulted in multiple deaths,” said Acting U.S. Attorney Farley.  “Now that his appeal has been unsuccessful, he will remain incarcerated where he can no longer pose a danger to the community.”

             This matter was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation.  The case was prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorneys John S. Davis and Matthew T. Hunter.

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