Owner of gunpowder plant where 2 died denied early release

LANCASTER, N.H. (AP) - A former gunpowder plant owner imprisoned over a deadly 2010 explosion has been denied a request for an early release.

Craig Sanborn, 71, of Maidstone, Vermont, was convicted in 2013 in the explosion that killed two workers at the Black Mag plant in Colebrook, New Hampshire. He was sentenced to 10 to 20 years in prison on two manslaughter counts.

Sanborn’s minimum release date is November 2023, when he’ll be 74. His attorney, Jason Bedrick, sought to suspend the rest of the sentence, the Caledonian-Record reported. A judge denied that request last month.

Bedrick said after serving 80 months, or two-thirds, of his 120-month term, Sanborn was eligible to request that the court suspend the remainder of his sentence.

Bedrick said Sanborn has been a “model inmate” and a mentor to others. He also argued that Sanborn faces health risks and possible COVID-19 infection because of his age and health conditions. Sanborn also has to serve a 28-month sentence in federal prison in a separate case after his state prison sentence ends. He was convicted of wire fraud in Maine.

Coos County Attorney John McCormick said while Sanborn has been a commendable inmate, his “actions in recklessly engaging in the manufacture of gunpowder that led to the deaths of two hardworking citizens of Coos County were far from commendable,” as a jury determined.