bail at a Chicago federal prison. Trial, conviction and sentencing On July 21, 2010, Tomkins backed out of a plea deal and filed a motion to act as his own attorney at trial. He told the court that he would plead guilty to the 12 lesser counts, in the hope that prosecutors would drop the 13th count to avoid a trial. That count, possession of a destructive device while committing a violent crime, carries a minimum sentence of 30 years in prison. Tomkins told the court, "If they insist on a trial, a trial they'll have. It's going to be lengthy. I'm going to defend myself to the best of my ability." In 2012, Tomkins defended himself at trial in Chicago. He admitted sending the packages but insisted they would never have exploded. On May 4, 2012, after deliberating for about two hours, a jury found him guilty of nine counts of extortion and three counts relating to the pipe bombs, including one count of "building, possessing and delivering a destructive device." Tomkins was sentenced to 37 years in federal prison on May 21, 2013. He is currently incarcerated at the Federal Correctional Institution, Pekin, a medium-security facility in Illinois, and is scheduled for release in 2039. References External links Indictment (17 page *.pdf document) Federal complaint (*.pdf) (retrieved May 6, 2007) US Attorney's press release (*.pdf) (retrieved May 6, 2007) Detailed report on The Bishop's actions FBI press release (retrieved May 6, 2007) Living people Year of birth missing (living people) American extortionists