Botched penile surgery ends in bomb charge

A Pennsylvania man who confessed to mailing a letter-bomb to a surgeon he claimed botched a penile enhancement operation has pleaded guilty to weapons charges.

Against his lawyer's wishes, Blake Steidler, 25, pleaded guilty in Philadelphia to using a weapon of mass destruction for sending a mail bomb to a Chicago doctor in February 2005.

Steidler had been "extremely unhappy with the results" of the $8,000 surgery in 2003, Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Arbittier Williams said in court filings.

After mailing it in Ohio, Steidler panicked and called 911. The package was retrieved and defused, the Lancaster (Pa.) New Era reported.

Steidler's lawyer, Luis Ortiz, said Steidler is mentally ill and questioned why he pleaded guilty to using a weapon of mass destruction, which carries a 4- to 8-year sentence, while the charge of mailing a letter bomb has about a 2-year sentence.

"You shouldn't group this guy with people who drive truckloads of explosives to buildings or gather anthrax or do things for political reasons," Ortiz said.

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