2 young men plead guilty in Harvard Medical School explosion. "They do stupid things," attorney says.
Two young men from Massachusetts pleaded guilty in Boston federal court Friday to their roles in an explosion at Harvard Medical School last year.
Logan David Patterson, 18, of Plymouth, and 21-year-old Dominick Frank Cardoza of Bourne, each pleaded guilty to one count of conspiracy to damage a building by means of fire and an explosive.
The men admitted to exploding a commercial grade firework in a locker outside a lab on November 1, 2025. It happened in the middle of the night, on the fourth floor of the Goldenson Building on Longwood Avenue. U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Leah Foley described the device as a Roman candle.
Patterson and Cardoza were caught on surveillance cameras, wearing masks and dark clothes, climbing scaffolding outside the building around 2:30 a.m. before going inside through the roof. When a fire alarm went off after the explosion, they ran out an exit on the first floor and ditched their clothes.
The FBI said the men started the night partying at nearby colleges and ended up at the Wentworth Institute of Technology after the explosion. Investigators said Patterson and Cardoza described to students what they had done and showed off a video they captured. Four witnesses then reported it to authorities after Harvard police released photos of the two masked suspects wanted in the incident.
Patterson and Cardoza were arrested three days after the explosion.
Outside court Friday, their attorneys described the incident as a night of misbehaving and not an intentional, targeted attack.
"When kids are kids, their brains aren't developed and they do stupid things, as we all did," said Patterson's attorney Kevin Reddington.
"This wasn't any attempt to subvert the U.S. government. This wasn't an attempt to attack any specific institution. This was an evening of two boys who went out and committed mischief," said Cardoza's attorney Stefan Rozembersky.
Patterson and Cardoza will be sentenced on August 4. They could face prison time. Their attorneys will be requesting probation.
