Porterville Man Pleads Guilty to Making 3D Printed Claymore Mine, M-67 Grenade

By Anthony W. Haddad

Published 2 months ago on

October 8, 2024

Joseph Marcus Silva, 28, of Porterville, pleaded guilty to unlawfully possessing a silencer and manufacturing destructive devices, including a 3D-printed Claymore-type mine and M-67 grenade, and faces up to 10 years in prison. (Shutterstock)

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Joseph Marcus Silva, 28, of Porterville, pleaded guilty on Monday to charges of unlawfully possessing a silencer and manufacturing three destructive devices, U.S. Attorney Phillip A. Talbert said.

Court documents showed that Silva used a 3D printer to create two of the devices, one resembling a military Claymore mine. This device was designed to project lethal shrapnel, marked with the ominous phrase “FRONT TOWARDS ENEMY.”

The second 3D-printed device was fashioned after the military M-67 grenade, while a third destructive device was assembled using a glass tube filled with flash powder and BBs, equipped with a fuse. Silva was also found in possession of an unregistered silencer.

Silva was previously ordered detained on grounds of evidence linking him to firearms and drug trafficking.

He is set to be sentenced on Jan. 21, 2025. He faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine for each of the four charges.

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Anthony W. Haddad,

Multimedia Journalist

Anthony W. Haddad, who graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with his undergraduate degree and has an MBA at Fresno State, is the Swiss Army knife of GV Wire. He writes stories, manages social media, and represents the organization on the ground.