Governor's mansion arsonist makes chilling revelation (2025)

The arsonist who torchedPennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro's mansion has revealed he would have hit him with a hammer if they crossed paths.

Cody Balmer, 38, has been charged with attempted murder, aggravated arson, burglary, and terrorism over the shocking incident early on Sunday morning.

Dauphin County District Attorney Fran Chardo said Balmer hammered his way into the Harrisburg, PA property while Shapiro and his family slept inside, before launching Molotov Cocktails through two windows.

Fire crews rushed to the three-story Georgian home around 2am. Luckily, everyone inside was in a separate part of the property and managed to safely evacuate.

But the incident could have taken a deadly turn if Balmer had come across the Democratic Party governor during his bloodthirsty rampage.

According to the police affidavit seen by DailyMail.com, Balmer told police he 'would have beaten him with a hammer' if they had crossed paths.

'During his interview, Balmer admitted to harboring hatred towards Governor Shapiro,' the affidavit reads - though it's unclear whether this is on political or other grounds.

Balmer launched his attack on the mansion, located at2035 North Front Street, after managing to scale a seven-foot fence protecting the property.

Shapiro was sleeping inside, alongside his wife Lori Shapiro. 'Additional guests and staff members' were also in bed at the time, according to police.

Cops said video surveillance footage from security cameras both inside and outside the residence showed Balmer 'climbing over an exterior perimeter fence' before smashing his way inside using a hammer.

'The defendant approached the piano room windows on the south side of the Governor's Resident and proceeded to break an exterior window,' the affidavit reads.

'The defendant then threw an incendiary device into the residence through the broken window'.

Balmer went on to break an adjacent window and entered the burning building via this cavity, before 'deploying an incendiary device in the dining room'.

Police said he wore all-black apart from two different colored gloves -one orange and one yellow - which were later found in trash cans on nearby Peffer Street.

He also donned a 'Snap-On jacket with distinctive shoulder patches', which Pennsylvania State Police later found in his home in Penbrook Borough along with a gasoline container.

The affidavit reveals that Balmer's ex-girlfriend, who is not named, turned him in initially on his request, before he turned up at the police station himself.

Balmer, from Harrisburg, told cops he removedgasoline from a lawnmower and poured it into Heineken bottles, which he used to fire-bomb the mansion.

Photographs show the luxury mansion was badly damaged by the fire, with several rooms reduced to blackened husks with all possessions inside torched to the ground.

Surviving pieces of furniture in the impacted areas included a chandelier, a badly-charred sofa, and several coffee tables in the once-stunning interior.

A shocking photograph of Balmer clutching a gun and pointing it down the lens of his camera has also been unearthed since.

Balmer's social media profile is littered with political commentary and criticism about American institutions.

He previously made chilling posts about former president Joe Biden and his supporters, going as far as suggesting the former president was going to be killed.

'Biden supporters shouldn't exist,' he wrote in one post dated January 2021.

'RIP Joe Biden... whoops that's in May. #notmypresident,' another read, while another added that 'knowing is half the battle... the other half is extreme violence.'

Shapiro shared a statement via X about the shocking incident.

'Last night at about 2am, my family and I woke up to bangs on the door from the Pennsylvania State Police after an arsonist set fire to the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg,' he wrote on Sunday.

'The Harrisburg Bureau of Fire was on the scene and while they worked to put out the fire, we were evacuated from the Residence safely by Pennsylvania State Police and assisted by Capitol Police.

'Thank God no one was injured and the fire was extinguished. Every day, we stand with the law enforcement and first responders who run towards danger to protect our communities.

'Last night, they did so for our family – and Lori and I are eternally grateful to them for keeping us safe.'

Shapiro and his wife share four children together - Sophia, Jonah, Max and Reuben.

Sophie and Jonah are legal adults, while Max and Reuben are minors. It is unclear if the two eldest were in the home at the time of the blaze.

Just before the fire started, Shapiro, who is Jewish, offered Passover wishes on X, saying: 'From the Shapiro family’s Seder table to yours, happy Passover and Chag Pesach Sameach!'

The 29,000 square-foot mansion was built in 1968 and has served as the residence to eight governors and their families prior to Shapiro.

The property has flooded several times in the past, including during Hurricane Agnes in 1972 when then-Governor Milton Shapp resided there with his wife Muriel.

It then underwent 'extensive repairs' before flooding again in 2011 during Tropical Storm Lee.

Shapiro has served as the Governor of Pennsylvania since 2023. He previously worked as the attorney general for the Keystone State from 2017-2023.

He is viewed as a possible contender for the 2028 presidential race, after being eyed as a potential running mate for Kamala Harris in the previous election.