Thread: 16 Years Later

Oklahoma City bombing: key figures
Steven Bryan Fri Apr 15, 4:32 pm ET

In what has been called one of the worst acts of domestic terrorism, a truck bomb destroyed the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building on April 19, 1995, resulting in 168 deaths. Authorities ultimately charged Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols with conspiracy to bomb a federal building and the murder of eight federal agents who were in the building at the time.

Who was Timothy McVeigh?

McVeigh, 26, at the time of the attacks, was born in Pendleton, N.Y. McVeigh enlisted in the army in 1988 and served in the Persian Gulf War. Convicted on multiple counts, including conspiracy and murder, McVeigh was executed by lethal injection on June 11, 2001.

Who is Terry Nichols?

Born April 1, 1955, in Lapeer, Mich., Terry Nichols joined the U.S. Army in 1988. During basic training in Georgia, Nichols met Timothy McVeigh. The two men also served at Fort Riley near Junction City, Kan. Nichols currently is serving a life sentence at the federal Supermax prison in Florence, Colo., for his part in the Oklahoma City bombing.

What prompted McVeigh and Nichols to bomb the Alfred P. Murrah Building?

According to investigators, both McVeigh and Nichols were upset at the government's raid on the Branch Davidian complex in Waco, TX. Eighty members of the Branch Davidian splinter group perished when agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms stormed the complex in 1993. It is believed that McVeigh and Nichols began planning the Oklahoma City Bombing sometime in 1994.

What part did Michael Fortier play in the bombing?

Honorably discharged in May 1991, Michael Fortier also met McVeigh at Georgia's Fort Benning. Investigators say that Fortier shared McVeigh and Nichols' contempt for the federal government. When McVeigh showed Fortier his plans for bombing the federal building, however, Fortier refused to participate. Fortier lied to FBI investigators, was later convicted of failing to warn authorities about the conspiracy and sentenced to 12 years in prison.

Following the Oklahoma City Bombing, who arrested McVeigh?

Oklahoma State Trooper Charles Hanger pulled McVeigh over as he was driving without tags on Interstate 35. Hanger noticed McVeigh also had a weapon inside his jacket and arrested him. While in custody in Perry, Okla., federal investigators connected McVeigh to the Oklahoma City bombing.

What was the crucial piece of evidence in McVeigh's trial?

Prior to the explosion, surveillance footage from a nearby security camera showed a yellow Ryder truck parked near the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building . Authorities recovered an axle from the truck, which was traced back to Elliott's Body Shop in Junction City, Kan. Eldon Elliott, owner of the body shop, later identified McVeigh as the person who rented the truck.

Who are the subjects in the famous Oklahoma City Bombing photograph?

A photo showing firefighter Chris Fields cradling tiny Baylee Almon became one of the most identifiable images connected with the Oklahoma City Bombing. Almon later perished from her wounds. Chris Porter won the Pulitzer Prize for Spot Photography in 1996 for taking this photo.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20110415/..._key_figures_1



Oklahoma City bombing facts, figures
Steven Bryan – Fri Apr 15, 3:04 pm ET

April 19 marks the 16th anniversary of the Oklahoma City Bombing. Here are some facts and figures concerning the bombing.

* Constructed in 1977, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City contained regional offices for the Secret Service; the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF); and other government agencies. The building was named in honor of Alfred P. Murrah, an Oklahoma native who served as chief judge on the Federal Court of Appeals for the 10th Circuit.

* The explosion that destroyed the building occurred at 9:02 a.m. Surveillance camera footage from the adjacent Regency Towers shows a yellow Ryder truck parked near the federal building minutes before the blast.

* 168 people died as a result of the bombing, including 19 children, one rescue worker and eight federal law enforcement agents who were working in the building at the time. The truck bomb, weighing an estimated 4,000 pounds, was believed to be composed of ammonium nitrate fertilizer and nitomethane racing fuel and detonated by a blasting cap.

* After the bombing, Charles Hanger, an Oklahoma state trooper, arrested a driver in a yellow Mercury Marquis for driving without tags on Interstate 35. The driver, later identified as Timothy McVeigh, also was carrying a loaded .45 caliber Glock pistol inside his jacket. Dashboard footage from Hanger's vehicle showing the arrest was released to the media in 2008.

* Before he was released, federal authorities linked McVeigh to the Oklahoma City Bombing. Terry Nichols, a friend of McVeigh's, voluntarily surrendered to authorities on April 21, 1995. Both men were ultimately charged with conspiracy to bomb a federal building and murder of federal agents. A raid on a Michigan farm owned by Nichols and his brother James uncovered several materials, including ammonium nitrate.

* Authorities recovered an axle from the Ryder truck and, using the vehicle identification number, traced the truck back to a body shop in Junction City, Kan. During his 1997 federal trial in Denver , Eldon Elliott, owner of Elliot's Body Shop, identified McVeigh as the person who rented the Ryder truck days before the explosion.

* Surveillance footage from a nearby McDonald's restaurant also shows McVeigh buying a pie shortly before the truck was rented.

* On June 2, 1997, McVeigh was found guilty of bombing the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. After a series of appeals, McVeigh was executed by lethal injection on June 11, 2001. Terry Nichols currently is serving a life sentence at the federal Supermax prison in Florence, Colo.

* On May 24, 1995, employees of Controlled Demolition, Inc., placed approximately 150 pounds of explosives in 420 locations within the shell of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building . The resulting implosion brought the remaining structure down within 7 seconds. The Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum now occupies that space.


http://news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20110415/...Z5ZWFyc2xhdGVy

Comments

Just a note to say that not all terrorists are wild-eyed, brown-skined folks from the Middle East. Least we forget, Tim McVeigh was a blond-haired, blue-eyed all-American native son.

I still suspect there were many more people involved in this home-grown terrorist plot but it seems as though our federal government simply wanted to wrap up the case in a nice, tidy conviction.

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