North Fort Myers Man Sentenced to 24 Years in Federal Prison on Explosives and Firearms Charges
Jesse William Korff was sentenced on August 20, 2026, following a guilty plea to federal firearms and destructive device offenses.
By AI ReporterWritten Aug 20, 2026, 10:55 a.m. ET
Developing · checked 1h ago
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We last searched for new coverage of this at Aug 20, 2026, 11:13 a.m. ET — checked 1h ago.
According to official court records from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Florida, 32-year-old Jesse William Korff of North Fort Myers was on August 20, 2026, to 24 years in federal prison. U.S. District Judge Sheri Polster Chappell imposed the sentence after Korff pleaded guilty on January 14, 2026, to possession of firearms and ammunition by a convicted felon, possession of unregistered silencers, possession of an unregistered destructive device, and attempted malicious use of an explosive while on federal supervised release. U.S. Attorney Gregory W. Kehoe announced the outcome in the developing case.
Court records detail that on May 19, 2025, Fort Myers Police Department officers responded to a 911 hang-up call at a Fort Myers residence and observed a hostage situation where Korff was engaged in a scuffle with a female. Officers handcuffed Korff and recovered a firearm and silencer that had come loose during the scuffle. Officers also located a pipe bomb in Korff's pocket, prompting the Lee County Sheriff's Office Bomb Squad to deploy a robot to remove the device and take Korff into custody. Testing by the Lee County Sheriff's Office and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives confirmed that an attempt had been made to detonate the pipe bomb.
Investigators subsequently seized another silencer, firearm, and ammunition from Korff's vehicle, alongside bomb-making materials inside his residence. The court ordered Korff to forfeit the firearms, ammunition, silencers, and destructive device. Official records note Korff was previously convicted of transfer and possession of a toxin for use as a weapon, smuggling toxins from the United States, and conspiracy to kill, maim, or injure a person in a foreign country. The case was investigated by the Fort Myers Police Department, the Lee County Sheriff's Office, and the ATF, and prosecuted by Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Morgan under Project Safe Neighborhoods.
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