NORTH HAVERHILL — A 44-year-old Grafton man has been sentenced on multiple felony and misdemeanor gun and explosive charges in connection with a large-scale police operation that took place at his rural Riddle Hill Road farm in Grafton last November.
Seamus Murphy pleaded guilty to four misdemeanor and seven felony charges of being a felon in possession of a firearm and possessing explosives on March 27 in Grafton Superior Court in North Haverhill.
Judge Jonathan Frizzell subsequently sentenced him two to four years in New Hampshire State Prison on a charge of felon in possession of a dangerous weapon.
Murphy is also serving multiple 12-month sentences on misdemeanor charges of possession of explosives and resisting arrest concurrent with his two to four years state prison sentence.
During his two-year minimum, he is eligible to take six months off his sentence as long as he remains free of major discipline while in state prison.
Once he is on parole, Murphy can — through good behavior such as no new arrests or convictions — avoid a consecutive suspended sentence of three to seven years in state prison for additional felony counts of felon in possession of a dangerous weapon.
Murphy’s attorney, Lancaster, N.H.-based Leonard Harden, reached by phone on Thursday, declined to comment on the outcome of the case.
A voicemail left for Grafton County Attorney Taylor Moult, prosecutor in the case, was not returned by deadline.
Murphy was wanted on multiple outstanding warrants out of Merrimack County when he was arrested at his rural Riddle Hill Road farm in Grafton in November in a police operation involving 30 officers from the U.S. Marshals Service, 10 deputies from the Merrimack County Sheriff’s Office and members of the New Hampshire Joint Fugitive Task Force, the Valley News previously reported.
Murphy, described by authorities as a “self-proclaimed sovereign citizen,” had numerous prior offenses including felon in possession of a firearm, escape and multiple convictions involving controlled substances and narcotics, according to a U.S. Marshals news release issued in November.
During the police operation, authorities seized multiple firearms along with homemade “ghost gun” parts, body armor, explosive devices and ammunition.
At his January arraignment in Grafton Superior Court, Murphy, who appeared virtually from Merrimack County Jail, entered not guilty pleas to 12 misdemeanor and felony charges — one felony charge of felon in possession of a firearm was dismissed in February due to lack of evidence.
Judge Lawrence MacLeod ordered Murphy held in Merrimack County jail without bail.
On March 11, Murphy was transported to Grafton County jail in North Haverhill where he was held until being transferred to New Hampshire State Prison in Concord on March 27 to begin serving his two to four year sentence.
