Source: United States Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco Firearms and Explosives (ATF)
A Salem, Oregon man was arraigned in federal court today for possessing Molotov cocktails while attempting to destroy property at a Salem car dealership.
Adam Matthew Lansky, 41, has been charged by criminal complaint with illegally possessing an unregistered destructive device.
According to court documents, on January 20, 2025, officers from the Salem Police Department responded to a report of an individual throwing Molotov cocktails at a local car dealership. Later, on February 19, 2025, officers returned to the same dealership after a report of damage from what appeared to be bullets fired into a building and vehicle.
Investigators soon linked Lansky to both incidents. Surveillance footage obtained from the car dealership appeared to show Lansky throwing Molotov cocktails that struck a dealership building and several vehicles, causing fires. Surveillance video from a patrol car captured a vehicle parked near the dealership while Lansky is alleged to have discharged multiple firearm rounds into a building and at least one vehicle. Investigators learned the vehicle was registered to Lansky and observed it at his residence.
Lansky was arrested Tuesday without incident in Salem and made his first appearance in federal court today before a U.S. Magistrate Judge. He was ordered detained pending further court proceedings.
The case is being investigated by the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, and Salem Police Department. It is being prosecuted by Parakram Singh, Assistant U.S. Attorney for the District of Oregon.
A criminal complaint is only an accusation of a crime, and a defendant is presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty.