Green Township man sentenced to 2 years in prison for constructing pipe bombs

CINCINNATI - A Green Township man was sentenced in federal court here today to 24 months in prison for constructing three pipe bombs.

Robert Gilb, 51, caused the detonation of three improvised explosive devices (IED) in Hamilton and Butler counties in March and April 2025.

Specifically, on April 12, 2025, Hamilton County sheriff's deputies were dispatched to Miami Township for a report of a loud explosion. They discovered what appeared to be a blast crater and components of an improvised explosive device (IED).

Further investigation revealed that there were two prior incidents in Morgan Township

that had similar characteristics to the incident in Miami Township. Butler County sheriff's deputies had responded to incidents there on March 23 and March 28. Witnesses saw Gilb in his white BMW near the site of at least one of the devices when it exploded.

A search of Gilb's residence revealed materials consistent with the construction of destructive devices.

Gilb was indicted in June 2025 and pleaded guilty in October 2025 to possessing an unregistered destructive device.

Dominick S. Gerace II, United States Attorney for the Southern District of Ohio, and Jason Cromartie, Special Agent in Charge, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Cincinnati Division, as well as the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF), Hamilton County Sheriff's Office, Butler County Sheriff's Office, Ohio State Fire Marshalls Office, Greater Cincinnati HAZMAT, Green Township Police Department and Green Township Fire Department, announced the sentence imposed today by U.S. District Judge Jeffery P. Hopkins. Assistant Deputy Criminal Chief Timothy S. Mangan is representing the United States in this case.

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