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Letters after Times Square bombing: 'We did it'
by Dave Keating | March 7, 2008 at 05:01 am | 338 views | 1 comment | 0 recommendations
Letters have been sent to many in the US congress showing a photo of someone in front of the Times Square recruiting station saying 'we did it'.
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Letters claiming responsibility for the bombing of a military recruiting station in New York's Times Square arrived in the Washington offices of several members of Congress on Thursday, just hours after the blast, authorities said.
Security video shows a bicyclist approach a Times Square recruiting station moments before a bomb went off.
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Police are searching for a hooded bicyclist seen on a surveillance tape just before an early morning bombing at the office, according to the FBI.
The letters sent to Capitol Hill contained at least one picture of the station, apparently before the attack, a law enforcement official familiar with the investigation told CNN.
Police knew of fewer than 10 of the letters that had been received by members of Congress, a second law enforcement source said.
The letters were all received by Democrats, another law enforcement source said.
They contained a picture of a man standing in front of the recruiting station with the statement "We did it," according to an e-mail sent by the office of Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-California, and obtained by CNN.
"He is standing in front of it with his arms spread out and he's attached his political manifesto," the message said.
An e-mail sent to members of Congress from Capitol Police described the letters as arriving in 5-by-8-inch manila envelopes. The e-mail warned recipients not to open them, but to contact police immediately.
Capitol Police said that they were working with the FBI to investigate, but that there was no "established connection" between the letters and the blast.
Authorities consider the bicyclist in the surveillance video a possible suspect in the bombing, which occurred about 3:40 a.m. and caused no injuries
March 7, 2008 at 05:01 am by Dave Keating, 338 views, 1 comment
Most RecentMost Recommended Comments (1)
at 07:51 on March 7th, 2008
Turns out the letters are unrelated. From the AP:
WASHINGTON — There's apparently no link between the bombing of a
military recruiting station in New York's Times Square and letters sent
to Congress saying "We Did It," law enforcement officials said Friday.
The lengthy anti-war letters _ which arrived with photos of a man
standing in front of the recruiting office before it was damaged _
contained no threats and were sent to as many as 100 members of
Congress, officials said.
Laura Eimiller, an FBI
spokeswoman in Los Angeles, said an individual was questioned there
about the letters to Congress and "there is no evidence linking the
letters, which contained no threat, to the bombing."
A law enforcement official in Washington, who spoke on condition of
anonymity because the investigation of the bombing was continuing,
called the timing of the letters an "incredibly unbelievable
coincidence" and said no charges were expected in connection with them.
Democratic lawmakers on Capitol Hill were startled to receive the
letters in their office mail Thursday afternoon, just hours after the
early morning New York bombing, and turned them over to the Capitol
Police.
One law enforcement official said the "We Did It" referred to the
Democratic wins. The Democrats gained control of Congress in 2006.
"It looked like a holiday card," Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass., said
Friday. He described a photograph of a white man who appeared to be in
his 30s or 40s, standing in front of the Times Square office before it
was damaged, with the words, "We Did It" and "Happy New Year" printed
below the photo.
Capitol Police, FBI and U.S. Postal Inspection Service were investigating.
In an e-mail to lawmakers, Capitol Police said the envelopes went
through the standard security process. That process, which involves
radiating incoming mail, can easily take a week or more, making it
likely the letters were mailed well ahead of the bombing.
The small bomb caused minor damage to the New York military
recruiting station before dawn Thursday and police were searching for a
hooded bicyclist seen on a surveillance video pedaling away.