Crude Bombs Target Aviation Employees

Saturday, March 25, 2006 Posted: 0005 GMT (0805 HKT)

edition.cnn.com...

DENVER, Colorado (AP) -- At least three crude bombs exploded and two others were disarmed Friday at the homes of people who work for a federal aviation contractor in Grand Junction, Colorado, prompting evacuation of the air traffic control tower at the city airport, officials said.

No injuries were reported and there were no delays at the airport.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but authorities were focusing on "a person of interest," said Grand Junction police Sgt. Paul Quimby, and a manhunt involving dozens of officers was under way.

The bombs were placed at homes of people who work for the company Serco, which operates Grand Junction's air traffic control tower, said Steve Christmas, the company's vice president for aviation operations.

Denver controllers handled air traffic for Grand Junction for about an hour until controllers were able to return to the tower there, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Laura Brown said. A security sweep was being conducted at Walker Field airport, said Carrie Harmon, a spokeswoman for the Transportation Security Administration.

The bombs had "no known link to aviation," Harmon said, and the sweep was conducted "out of an abundance of caution."

Quimby said the devices resembled incendiary devices rather than bombs; one explosion scorched the front of a garage door and melted the vinyl siding. He declined to comment on a report in the Daily Sentinel of Grand Junction that they were contained in black, office-style trash cans covered in silver duct tape.

"This would be very doable by kids with the Internet and a little ingenuity," Quimby said. "We are concerned there are others out there that no one has discovered yet."

The bombs prompted warnings from authorities as they fanned out across this western Colorado city of 45,000 looking for suspects and more devices.

"It could have killed my family," said Richard Smith, whose house received minor damage. "It was a little scary, but it happened at 4:30 in the morning" and everyone was inside.

Christmas said his company was offering assistance to the affected employees, including offering them the opportunity to spend the night somewhere else. He declined to comment on who the bomber or bombers might be.

A team from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives was heading to the scene, ATF spokeswoman Sheree Mixell said.

Serco, a British company, operates 54 air traffic control towers for the FAA, according to its Web site.


[edit on 25-3-2006 by digitalassassin]

[edit on 25-3-2006 by digitalassassin]

Sounds less like terrorism and more like a disgruntled ex-employee of the company. That's what I'd put my money on. It's either someone recently laid off, or possibly a current employee who has a beef with certain people within the company. I don't even know if this story falls under the terrorism category, except for the fact that this guy is "terrorizing" people with these crude incindiary devices.

The title of this thread is also misleading, as an official called the devices more "incindiary" than "bombs." But then again, the author of the article continually calls them bombs throughout the story.

Good find though, digitalassassin! Keep us posted on any updates if you're able to...