Anderson man found guilty of impersonating Homeland Security officer & possessing Molotov cocktails

A federal jury has found Joshua W. Stearman, 42, Anderson, guilty of unlawfully possessing incendiary bombs, commonly referred to as Molotov cocktails, and falsely impersonating an officer or employee of the United States.

According to court documents and evidence introduced at trial on Dec. 12, 2023, at approximately 1:47 a.m., a police officer in Ingalls, Ind., was dispatched to an address that had recently been vandalized multiple times, including with fires set in the driveway and inside the mailbox at that address. Dispatch received a report of a suspicious man walking toward the house carrying something but who ran back to his red Toyota RAV4 when the house’s security lights came on.

The officer located the RAV4 and pulled it over. As the officer approached, Stearman pressed against the window his ID as well as an unknown government identification that included a government seal at the bottom. Repeatedly, Stearman claimed he was a Homeland Security Officer returning from a “mission.” Stearman was wearing black gloves with black duct tape around his wrists.

Eventually, Stearman exited the vehicle and was placed in custody. Inside the vehicle, officers found four bottles containing a yellow-brown liquid that gave off an odor of fuel, as well as what appeared to be small pieces of wood or kindling inside of them. All four had a piece of cloth or fabric sticking out from under the cap. Officers also found a lighter in the vehicle.

During the trial, experts from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) testified about their analysis of the four bottles. An ATF Forensic Chemist testified that she had analyzed the liquid inside the bottles, and each was found to contain gasoline.

Then, an ATF Destructive Device Examiner testified how each of the bottles was designed to be used as an incendiary bomb: the wick is ignited by an open flame and the device is thrown against a surface, with the intent that the ignitable liquid and wooden sticks inside will spread fire to a combustible surface against which it was thrown.

Incendiary bombs, commonly known as Molotov cocktails, are a type of destructive device that is generally unlawful to possess under federal law.

The ATF and Ingalls Police Department investigated this case, with valuable assistance provided by Lapel, Indiana Police Department, and the Department of Homeland Security. Chief U.S. District Judge Tanya Walton Pratt presided over the trial and will sentence Stearman at a later date.

Acting U.S. Attorney John E. Childress thanked Assistant U.S. Attorney Jayson W. McGrath and Special Assistant U.S. Attorney Nate Walter, who are prosecuting this case.