A Troy woman was convicted in federal court this week of trying to send a loaded gun to U.S. Sen. Jon Tester’s Washington, D.C. office last year.
Cathleen Roselyn Cantlon was found guilty on Jan. 20 of interstate mailing of a firearm and possession of a firearm by a person who has been committed to a mental institution during a two-day trial in U.S. District Court in Missoula.
According to court documents, U.S. Capitol Police received a report of a suspicious package on May 18, 2015 at the U.S. Senate mailing facility in Landover, Maryland. The package was addressed to “home land Security and Sentoe Johns Tester (sic).” The package’s return address was listed as Kootenai Drug True Value in Troy.
Capitol police technicians examined the package and found it contained a loaded .22 handgun, a knife, a can of pepper spray, and 53 rounds of ammunition. It also had miscellaneous papers and mail. During the investigation, a second package from Troy was found in the mail facility that contained an envelope with “Hazard Contaminated/Dirty Bomb” written on the side. In one of the packages there was a letter signed by Cantlon. In the letter to Tester, she wrote about mental health issues and the banking system.
Cantlon’s trial started on Jan. 19 and it took a jury about three-and-a-half hours to find the woman guilty on both counts. Cantlon’s sentencing is set for May 5. She faces up to 10 years in prison and $250,000 in fines.