The FBI has confirmed that Anthony Warner, 63, was the culprit behind a Christmas Day bombing in downtown Nashville.
“Based on the evidence that we got at this point, we’ve come to the conclusion that an individual named Anthony Warner is the bomber,” U.S. Attorney Don Cochran said, adding that Warner perished in the explosion.
The explosion left at least three people hospitalized and 41 businesses damaged — perhaps most significantly an AT&T facility adjacent to where the RV that exploded was positioned. The blast caused outages in parts of Tennessee, Alabama, and Kentucky and affected services ranging from residential phones to 911 services.
Tennessee Bureau of Investigations Director David Rausch acknowledged the “collaborative effort” that took place to conduct the investigation and the “agents, analysts, and scientists that have been assisting in this investigation from the start.”
Rausch said Warner’s identity was confirmed based on DNA testing conducted from human remains found at the crime scene and a sample taken from a vehicle used by Warner. “At approximately midnight Central Time, forensic scientists with TBI confirmed a match of the DNA at both locations belonging to the person of interest in this case,” Rausch said. “TBI continues to support this ongoing investigation.”
Special Agent Doug Korneski added that the bureau was still following leads but reaffirmed that it has found no evidence that any other individuals participated in the planning or execution of the attack.
“We’re still following leads right now,” Korneski said. “There is no indication that any other persons were involved. We reviewed hours of security video surrounding the recreational vehicle as well. We saw no other people involved around that vehicle.”
Korneski said investigators were able to recover a vehicle identification number that traced the detonated RV to Warner.
The FBI indicated that the DNA testing relied on DNA from a member of Warner’s family to confirm the match so rapidly.
The FBI indicates that there was DNA gathered from one of Warner’s relatives which helped them with the DNA comparison.
Also, TBI says there was NO prior contact with Warner and law enforcement.
— Tom Winter (@Tom_Winter) December 27, 2020
Investigators have yet to comment on potential motivations behind the explosion, but speculation has surfaced that it could have been because of paranoia regarding 5G technology. A real estate agent named Steve Fridrich told Newsweek that he contacted the FBI about a man he previously worked with named Tony Warner. Fridrich has said the FBI asked him if Warner was paranoid about 5G technology being used to spy on people.
Warner reportedly worked for Fridich’s company, Fridrich & Clark Realty office, as “contract laborer for computer consulting for the company,” according to the Tennessean.
Investigators are also reportedly looking into whether the previous employment of Warner’s father could have been a motivation. Charles Warner worked for BellSouth before he died in 2011. BellSouth was merged into AT&T in 2006.
Korneski said the FBI was still investigating “any and all possible motives” and that the bureau was questioning people who knew Warner.
