OKLAHOMA CITY BOMBING

The morning of April 19th, Timothy McVeigh loaded a rented Ryder truck outside the Alfred P. Murrah Federal building in Oklahoma City with a potent combination of agricultural fertilizer, diesel fuel, and other chemicals (FBI). He got out of the van, locked the door and then headed toward the getaway car. He then lit the two fuses one at a time. At 9:02 the bomb exploded. Blowing off a third of the building Not only was that building destroyed but 300 others surrounding were damaged, 168 people killed, 19 of which were children, and more than 650 people were injured making this explosion the largest act of terrorism till 9/11. However it is the largest domestic act of terror to date (FBI). Considering that this came right after the world trade center bombing, people believed that it must be a Middle Eastern terrorist. However, there were clues to tell the FBI otherwise and they were determined to find out who committed this act as quickly as possible. And that is exactly what happened.

Two days after the bombing an eyewitnesses description led authorities to charge Timothy McVeigh, who was already in custody for unlawfully carrying a hand gun and a traffic violation of not having plates on the getaway car ironically an hour after the bombing had occurred (Oklahoma City Bombing).

Timothy McVeigh, growing up in NY had a strong interest in guns and warfare. He believed that the Russians were still a threat and that a Cold war was possible. He sharpened up on his survival skills. In 1986 he graduated from High School and then in 1988 he enlisted in the Army where his survival skills were commended. This is also the time when he met Terry Nicols, who shared his love for survival techniques (Oklahoma City Bombing). In 1991 he was enlisted in the Persian Gulf War. He was a decorated soldier. But after his denial into the Special Forces he was discharged early in 1991. At this time he was discouraged with the downsizing of the army due to the collapse of the Soviet Union. He then shifted his hate toward the US Federal Government and especially Bill Clinton who was running a campaign on gun control. McVeigh and Nichols were disgusted in August of 1992 by the misuse of power by the US government in the Ruby Ridge incident where Randy Weaver, his wife and son were all killed. Randy Weaver had refused to make a deal to become an informant for the US government and held himself and his family up at Ruby Ridge. The ATF, (alcohol, tobacco and firearm organization,) the Secret Service and the DEA, (drug enforcement agency) which were held responsible fueled McVeigh and Nichols campaign against them (Oklahoma City Bombing). Both men at the time of their arrest were established members of a radical paramilitary right wing group. The other incident that was thought to inspire and fuel their mistrust and hate for the government was the Waco Texas Shooting. This was a standoff with the ATF and David Koresh who led a cult religious group living in a commune style. The members of this cult were not allowed out of the closed in area. David Koresh also believed the government was corrupt and the cause of much dissention in the US. In the end, several ATF Officers were killed along with 4 of