U.S. prosecutors appeal release of former Trump delegate
Weapons cache found in underground bunker, prosecutor says
More information has surfaced regarding the federal investigation of former Donald Trump delegate Caleb Andrew Bailey, accused of illegally transporting explosives and ammunition, possession of a machine gun, and production and possession of child pornography. Court records filed on Friday indicate Bailey, 30, of Waldorf had collected a “vast array of weapons found in an underground bunker at [his]
residence,” according to an affidavit submitted by the U.S. Attorneys Office.
Elected in April to be a delegate to the Republican National Convention, pledged to Donald Trump, Bailey remains in federal custody after U.S. Magistrate Judge Charles B. Day stayed his conditional release on Thursday, court records indicate.
Prosecutors argued that Bailey was dangerous and a flightrisk, and that “there are no conditions of release that reasonably will assure the safety of the community and his appearance at future hearings,” court records state.
Bailey’s next detention hearing is scheduled for 9 a.m. Wednesday in front of U.S. District Judge Paul W. Grimm.
Joe Cluster, executive director of the Maryland Republican Party, said last week that he received a letter with Caleb Bailey’s resignation as a delegate to the convention. Bailey was elected as a Trump delegate by GOP voters in the Fifth Congressional District, which includes Charles, Calvert and St. Mary’s counties, and parts of Prince George’s and Anne Arundel.
He was replaced by an alternate delegate, Dennis Di Bello of St. Leonard, Cluster said. Di Bello was also pledged to Trump on the primary election ballot and received the most votes among alternate delegates in the Fifth Congressional District.
His father, Collins Bailey, is the former vice chair of the Maryland Republican Party. When reached by phone after the indictment was announced May 19, Collins Bailey declined comment.
Cluster said last week that Collins Bailey, also of Waldorf, remains a Trump delegate to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland. The third Trump delegate elected from the Fifth District is Jim Crawford of Bryantown.
The indictment of Caleb Bailey comes after three months of investigation by special agents of the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives.
On Feb. 18, a package ruptured open at a postal facility in Capitol Heights, prompting postal police and inspectors to respond to the scene, authorities reported.
The package, which was addressed to a firearms store in Wisconsin, contained 400 rounds of .223 caliber ammo, 119 rounds of reloaded .50 caliber cartridges with M48A1 incendiary projectiles, and 200 rounds of 14.5mm M183A1 spotting projectiles, which contain an explosive charge, according to court records.
Investigation revealed that the package was one of five that had been dropped off at the U.S. Postal Service White Plains branch on Feb. 17, ATF Special Agent Daniel Giblin wrote in an affidavit.
On Feb. 25 and March 3, a man believed to be Caleb Bailey called and allegedly provided the tracking number for the package, advising that it had not been delivered yet, court records indicate. Investigators believe Bailey used a false name when he called the first time but identified himself as Caleb Bailey during the second call.
On May 5, police raided properties associated to Caleb Bailey, including his home, and allegedly seized a machine gun and reportedly found evidence that Bailey “used a minor to engage in sexually explicit conduct to produce child pornography” from March 2015 to January 2016, according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office. The indictment also alleges that Bailey was in possession of child pornography.
“Bailey faces a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for unlawful transport of explosives by a non-licensee and for illegal possession of a machine gun; a mandatory minimum of 15 years and a maximum of 30 years in prison for production and attempted production of child pornography; and a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison for possessing child pornography,” according to a statement from the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
U.S. Attorney for Maryland Rod J. Rosenstein commended ATF-Arson and Explosives Group for the Baltimore Field Division, Homeland Security Investigation in Baltimore, U.S. Postal Inspection Service-Washington Division and Charles County Sheriff’s Office for their work in the investigation, according to a press release. Rosenstein also thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Jennifer R. Sykes and Thomas P. Windom, who are prosecuting the case, in the release.