The FBI has arrested a man who they say tried to detonate a bomb near a downtown Oklahoma City bank using a van filled with explosives, according to multiple reports.
Jerry Drake Varnell, of Sayre, Okla., wanted to detonate a bomb in the city because of his hatred for the federal government, and his admiration for the 1995 Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh, according to court documents. Varnell was arrested at about 1 a.m. on Saturday, after authorities say he attempted to detonate what he thought was a van loaded with explosives.
The court filings also say an undercover FBI agent posed as someone that could help Varnell carry out the bombings, and was able to foil the plot.
“There was never a concern that our community’s safety or security was at risk during this investigation,” Kathryn Peterson, special agent in charge of the FBI in Oklahoma, said in a statement. “I can assure the public, without hesitation, that we had Varnell’s actions monitored every step of the way.”
The 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah federal building in Oklahoma City killed 168 people. McVeigh was executed in June of 2001, and his co-conspirator Terry Nichols is serving a life sentence in the Supermax federal prison in Colorado.
