Gregory Lee Rodvelt, a 71-year-old resident of Williams, Minnesota, received guilty verdicts from a federal jury on charges of attacking a federal law enforcement officer and firing a gun during a violent crime.
The situation occurred four years ago when FBI agents were sent to the 15-acre property Rodvelt was in the process of selling. The officers’ arrival was met with a surprise in the form of a booby-trapped wheelchair, stocked with a fishing line, shotgun ammunition and an array of items that were wired to trigger an explosion on movement.
Ultimately, this caused an FBI agent to sustain a gunshot wound in their leg–requiring hospitalization at a local medical center.
The incident has been compared to the climax of the 1981 classic “Indiana Jones: Raiders of the Lost Ark” in which an image of the protagonist, played by Harrison Ford, is seen running from a rolling boulder triggered by a switch.
Additionally, Rodvelt was known to have set up a minivan that was outfitted with spring-loaded animal snares and one-sided rotating spa–both of which were wired to roll over any trespasser that activated its tripwires.
Sentencing for Rodvelt will be handled by U.S. District Court Judge Michael McShane. Per the US District Attorney’s Office, assaulting a federal official with a deadly weapon can be punished by up to 20 years in prison; while firing a gun in relation to a violent crime can translate to a life sentence.