Man who blew up neighbors' car with pipe bomb, made racist threats sentenced to 5 years in WA prison

A 55-year-old Everett, Washington, man who admitted building and possessing a pipe bomb that exploded and destroyed a neighbor’s car has been sentenced to five years in federal prison, a punishment a judge said reflects “serious and quite frankly horrifying conduct” compounded by racist statements made after the attack.

Steven Goldstine was sentenced in the US District Court in Seattle after pleading guilty in September 2025 to three federal felonies: unlawful possession of a destructive device, unlawful possession of ammunition, and unlawful possession of a firearm. At the sentencing hearing, US District Judge John H. Chun condemned both the violence and its motivation, citing the defendant’s racist remarks connected to the incident. Federal officials described the car bombing as hate-fueled intimidation that could have turned deadly.

According to court records, the explosion happened on Dec. 31, 2024, when Everett police responded to reports that a car parked at an apartment complex had been blown up. The victims told investigators they suspected Goldstine because of an ongoing conflict. The next day, they received a voicemail message from him that included racial slurs and references to the explosion, authorities said.

Investigators used video surveillance from the victims’ apartment and nearby businesses to identify the suspect and later matched the bomber’s clothing to items recovered during a search of Goldstine’s home. The investigation also uncovered additional illegal weapons-related conduct. Prosecutors said Goldstine, barred from possessing firearms or ammunition because of prior felony convictions for burglary, arson, and possession of stolen property, had more than 700 rounds of ammunition at his home. Authorities also pointed to a September 2020 incident in which Goldstine was recorded pointing a gun at protesters in Everett; law enforcement searched his residence and seized the firearm.

In court filings seeking a 78-month sentence, prosecutors argued Goldstine had a long pattern of violence stretching back decades, citing serious arson convictions in the late 1980s and early 1990s and more recent incidents that included assaulting a neighbor, fighting with police, making threats online, and the December 2024 bombing.

Judge Chun also ordered three years of supervised release after Goldstine completes his prison term, including one year of electronic location monitoring.