Pro-abortion terrorist who firebombed pro-life organization on Mother's Day given light sentence

Pro-abortion terrorist Hridindu Sankar Roychowdhury firebombed the Wisconsin Family Action office in Madison on Mother's Day in 2022. Before he could flee the country, he was caught by police with the help of genetic evidence lifted off a half-eaten burrito.

U.S. District Judge William M. Conley sentenced Roychowdhury Wednesday to 7.5 years in prison for the terror attack — only two years more than the mandatory minimum sentence for his crime and possibly years less than what the pro-life activists behind the 2020 Washington Surgi-Clinic demonstration may end up serving for their peaceful protest.

Wisconsin Family Action president emeritus Julaine Appling expressed disappointment that the bomber, whom the Department of Justice recognized as a domestic terrorist, had gotten off lightly.

"May, 8, 2022, is forever emblazoned on my mind. It was a very visual reminder that people who disagree with us can and will use violence to try to silence us. We recommended the defendant receive 15 years imprisonment," said Appling. "We based that on justice — on the punishment fitting the crime, not on retribution or vengeance. This was a serious, premeditated crime that was the first of nearly 100 attacks on pro-life organizations across the country. In light of this, we are disappointed in the judge's decision regarding a crime the judge called 'terrorism' multiple times."

"A civil society does not exist if violence is the default reaction to disagreeing with people," added Appling.

Christine File, the current president of WFA, similarly expressed disappointment, stressing that the "court missed an opportunity to strengthen the protection of constitutional rights like free speech and free exercise, rights that have themselves been under assault in recent years."

"Given the severity of his crime and the charges he pled guilty to, the sentence lacks proportionality. However, as we've said since the day of the attack, no act or threat of violence or terrorism will deter us from our mission — being a voice for the voiceless," said Appling.

Roychowdhury's sentencing happened to take place the same day that an Antifa radical who had showcased pro-abortion agitprop as well as other leftist messaging online was arrested for allegedly setting off a nail bomb in February outside the Republican attorney general's office in Montgomery, Alabama.

Pro-abortion terrorism

Blaze News previously reported that roughly one week after the U.S. Supreme Court's draft opinion in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization, overruling Roe v. Wade, was leaked to the public, pro-abortion extremists and other leftists ramped up their attacks on pro-life facilities, activists, and churches across the country. One of the hundreds of pro-life targets was the WFA office near Dane County Regional Airport.

In the early hours of Mother's Day, 2022, Roychowdhury tossed a Molotov cocktail into the WFA office. Since it failed to ignite, he started another fire nearby, then left behind graffiti that said, "If abortions aren't safe then you aren't either" — a threat routinely used by the pro-abortion terror group Jane's Revenge.

The numbers "1312" were also spray-painted at the scene, which is a common representation of "ACAB," which means "all cops are bastards."

Thankfully, no one was inside the office at the time of the attack.

Police later found a broken glass jar with its lid burned black near a disposable lighter at the scene. They also found a second glass jar nearby with the lid on and a singed blue cloth tucked into the top. The second jar was half-full of a "clear fluid that smelled like an accelerant."

On the day of the attack, the Jane's Revenge blog posted what was supposedly Roychowdhury's "communiqué," which said, "This was only a warning. We demand the disbanding of all anti-choice establishments, fake clinics, and violent anti-choice groups within the next thirty days. ... We will not sit still while we are killed and forced into servitude. We have run thin on patience and mercy."

The post added, "Wisconsin is the first flashpoint, but we are all over the US, and we will issue no further warnings. And we will not stop, we will not back down, nor will we hesitate to strike."

Julaine Appling, who was the WFA president at the time, stated, "Apparently, the tolerance that the left demands is truly a one-way street. Violence has become their answer to everything."

The WFA made abundantly clear in the immediate aftermath of the pro-abortion terrorist attack and in the years since that it will not bend to intimidation.

Appling said, "It strengthened our resolve. We will repair our offices, remain on the job, and build an even stronger grassroots effort."

Escape foiled by a burrito

According to the Department of Justice, local law enforcement officials collected DNA from the scene of the attack belonging to three individuals. None of the suspects' DNA were in the DOJ's genetics database.

Despite this setback, investigators continued digging while Appling posted a $5,000 reward for potential leads.

In January 2023, there was a break in the case. When poring over surveillance footage of a leftist protest, police noticed anti-cop graffiti that resembled the threatening message left at the WFA office. The police analyzed the footage further and observed that the vandals responsible left the scene in a white pickup truck, which in turn led investigators to Roychowdhury.

Suspecting that the biochemist was linked to the bombing, they surveilled him. On March 1, 2023, police were afforded an opportunity to check the bomber's DNA against that discovered at the crime scene: the terrorist had thrown a half-eaten burrito into a public trash can. Officials recovered the burrito and had a forensic biologist inspect the DNA on it at an AFT laboratory. They ultimately confirmed that Roychowdhury was their man.

There was still the matter of catching him.

Roychowdhury had recently departed Madison for Portland, Maine, where he purchased a one-way plane ticket for March 28 from Boston to Guatemala. Even though the U.S. has an extradition treaty with the southern nation, once in Guatemala, Roychowdhury may have been able to find his way beyond America's reach.

Law enforcement intercepted Roychowdhury at the Boston Logan International Airport on the day of his planned departure and permanently grounded him.

"The firebombing was an unacceptable attack on the safety and constitutionally protected rights of every citizen in the state of Wisconsin," said Michael Hensle, special agent in charged of the FBI Milwaukee field office.

Guilt and sentencing

Roychowdhury pleaded guilty on Dec. 1, 2023, to attempting to cause damage by means of fire or an explosive.

While he faced the potential of decades in prison, prosecutors agreed to recommend that Judge Conley reduce his sentence because the terrorist supposedly accepted responsibility for the crime, reported the Associated Press.

Following Roychowdhury's sentencing Wednesday, U.S. Attorney Timothy M. O'Shea reiterated in a statement, "Roychowdhury's arson was an act of domestic terrorism."

"Domestic terrorism is cowardly and profoundly undemocratic," continued O'Shea. "It is not speech; it is not an exchange of ideas; instead, it is an attempt to harm or frighten one's fellow citizens, thus driving Americans apart and weakening the fabric of our democratic society."

ATF Director Stephen Dettelbach underscored that the pro-abortion attack was indeed an act of terrorism.

"Engaging in an act of terror — in this case, firebombing a business because of their beliefs — is criminal and unamerican. As today's sentencing demonstrates, it won't be tolerated," said Dettelbach.

WFA President Christine File said Thursday, "The defendant's act of domestic terrorism to threaten our people, our families and friends, our neighbors, and our greater pro-life community is unconscionable. Ultimately, the defendant — and others who attacked pro-life groups they disagree with — attacked our civil society and the constitutional rights foundational to it."

Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors, sign up for our newsletters, and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!