Austin man who planted multiple pipe bombs in WilCo pleads guilty to arson

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas - An Austin man who was accused of planting multiple pipe bombs around Williamson County pleaded guilty to arson.

According to the Williamson County District Attorney's Office, on Sept. 13, 61-year-old Michael Myers pleaded guilty to arson causing bodily injury. 

The DA's office said the arson was motivated by Myers' son dating a woman he did not approve of. Myers believed the woman and her family were stealing his son away from him. 

RELATED: Bomb squad detonates suspicious device found in yard in Georgetown

In 2021, the victim's family noticed strange occurrences around their property. They found superglue on locks, sabotaged lawn equipment and a sabotaged vehicle.

In January 2022, a pipe bomb exploded in the victim's van as the victim and his wife were driving in Williamson County. The driver suffered serious injuries.

The next month, the victim's son found a pipe bomb with a partially burned fuse in his backyard in Georgetown. 

Michael Sean Myers, 61

"It shook the house big time. It felt like a stick of dynamite," Georgetown resident Robert Vaughn told FOX 7 in February 2022.

Residents in a neighborhood just south of Southwestern University in Georgetown described what it was like when a pipe bomb went off nearby.

"It was very noisy, very big explosion," Georgetown resident Patrick Ermis told FOX 7 in February 2022.

This was back in 2022. It was a controlled detonation after police found a suspicious device left in the backyard of a home.

What residents didn’t know then, was this was a targeted attack, and this wasn’t the first.

In late 2022, officers found a third pipe bomb prepared by Myers, along with grenades at his home.

Throughout the investigation, officials believed Myers was responsible for the bomb exploding in the victim's car.

"Arson and explosive cases are legally very difficult cases to prove. I want to thank our prosecutors Eddie Wilkinson and Jason Jorgens for their determination and hard work in putting this case together along with our law enforcement partners. Terroristic and dangerous acts will not be tolerated in Williamson County, and I am proud of the work to see that Myers cannot harm anyone again in Williamson County," said Williamson County District Attorney Shawn Dick.

Myers was sentenced to 15 years in prison.