Hinsdale train station bomber sentenced to 20 years by federal judge

A federal judge sentenced a man to 20 years in prison for detonating a pipe bomb at the BNSF Railway station in Hinsdale in 2006.

According to a release from the U.S. attorney’s office in the Northern District of Illinois, Thomas James Zajac, 70, formerly of Oakbrook Terrace, placed a pipe bomb in a trash can at the Hinsdale BNSF station on Sept. 1, 2006. The device exploded during the morning commute, injuring a station agent.

A federal trial in Chicago last year provided evidence that the man felt disrespected by Hinsdale police in the year before the bombing due to the arrest of a family member, the release said. He was also accused of sending an anonymous threat to police a month after the bombing, officials said.

Zajac was convicted in Chicago on three counts: attempting to damage property with an explosive; possessing an unregistered destructive device; and willfully making a threat through the mail to kill or injure a person with an explosive.

Zajac is currently serving a 35-year federal sentence for bombing a public library in Salt Lake City, Utah, on Sept. 15, 2006. The U.S. district judge in the case ordered the 20-year sentence to be served after the completion of his current sentence.