A federal grand jury in Salt Lake City has indicted Skyler AJ Rose, 22, of Ogden, Utah, on charges including possession of an unregistered destructive device, threatening to kill and injure people and to destroy a building with an explosive, and attempting to commit a hate crime, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Utah announced on Thursday. Rose was indicted on October 21, 2026, and his initial appearance is scheduled for October 23 at 1:30 p.m. in courtroom 8.4 at the Orrin G. Hatch U.S. Courthouse in Salt Lake City.
Source: U.S. Department of Justice, District of Utah
According to allegations in court documents cited by the Justice Department, on December 23, 2025, a social-media user later identified as Rose made multiple threatening posts, one of which said, "I wanna blow up a synagogue." Investigators traced the posts to an IP address at the home where Rose lived. The FBI contacted the Ogden City Police Department for help visiting the home and confirmed the account belonged to Rose, the department said.
During a search under warrant, officers recovered six improvised explosive pipe bombs and one inert device, explosive precursors and components that could be used to build more pipe bombs, a black Samsung phone, and two rifles with magazines and ammunition, according to the Justice Department. A later search of the phone allegedly showed that in November 2025 Rose had searched online for a synagogue near him. The department also alleges the phone contained child sexual abuse material; that allegation is part of the court documents and has not been proven in court.
What officials said
"Today's indictment stops in its tracks an alleged plan to carry out a violent attack on a synagogue," said Assistant Attorney General Harmeet K. Dhillon of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division. U.S. Attorney Melissa Holyoak for the District of Utah said a place of worship "should be a refuge of safety, not fear," and FBI Salt Lake City Special Agent in Charge Robert Bohls said, "No one should have to fear for their safety because of their faith." Ogden Police Chief Jake Sube credited federal, state and local cooperation.
The federal indictment follows earlier Utah state charges in the same matter. KUTV reported in December 2025 that Ogden police linked Rose to antisemitic threats online and that investigators found six fully assembled metal pipe bombs and a seventh partially assembled, which court documents described as appearing "completed and operational," along with an assault-style rifle; state prosecutors filed weapons-of-mass-destruction and threat-of-terrorism charges, and Gephardt Daily reported Rose was held without bail after a December 24 police briefing at which Chief Sube said there was no evidence a specific synagogue had been targeted.
Source: KUTV via Fox Rochester
The case is being investigated jointly by the FBI Salt Lake City Field Office and the Ogden City Police Department, with help from Utah public-safety agencies, county bomb squads, the ATF and the Weber County Attorney's Office, and is being prosecuted by Special Assistant U.S. Attorney John Auchter. An indictment is merely an allegation, and Rose is presumed innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.