Police found four explosive devices in the Wheaton residence of James J. Lee, the man killed after a lengthy hostage standoff at the Discovery building, and are searching for other bombs they fear he may have constructed.
Lee, 43, had four devices strapped to his back when he was killed by police in the lobby of the Silver Spring building Wednesday, authorities said. They have determined that those explosives would have probably been fatal to him and could have injured the three people he held hostage if they had detonated.
But he was not, as they believed during the standoff, armed with a handgun.
Montgomery County Police Chief Thomas Manger said four more devices were found Thursday at a residence linked to Lee. And he said police are now determining whether Lee had a car in the area that could contain more explosives.
Capt. Paul Starks, a Montgomery County police spokesman, described the devices strapped to Lee’s body as two pipe bombs and two small propane cylinders.
“It was a life-threatening situation,” said Richard Bowers, Montgomery County fire chief, who added that a detonation likely would have killed Lee and injured the three people he held at the scene. Manger said Thursday that two starter pistols were found at the building. During the siege, police had believed those pistols were lethal weapons.
Lee entered the building about 1 p.m. and took three people hostage. The other 1,900 workers evacuated.
Authorities negotiated with Lee for hours before police entered the lobby after hearing what they thought was either a gunshot or an explosion. The hostages were running outside as the team was entering.
Several shots were fired and multiple officers fired their weapons, said Capt. Darryl McSwain, director of the Montgomery County police special operations division.
Much of Lee’s past remains unknown.
Lee had been convicted in California federal court of smuggling illegal immigrants into the United States in 2003, the Associated Press reported. At that time, he told a judge he had “absolutely nothing to show” for his first 36 years. He also said in a letter to the court, “I don’t know if my life will end with a happy ending, but all I ask is for an ending that is not in prison.”
He had little success after moving to Maryland. Lee “seemed to be very transient,” Bowers said. He said authorities were still trying to confirm details about his background.
Police searched his residence on the 2500 block of Kimberly Street in Wheaton. A neighbor, Onnik Mutafian, said he thought Lee had lived there for six to eight months. Mutafian said he didn’t know Lee well, but he always seemed “bitter.”
Lee was known for feeding peanut butter to squirrels, Mutafian said. For years, Lee had been a fringe environmental activist who protested Discovery and created a Web site with a list of demands to save the planet.
In a 2008 protest, Lee threw thousands of dollars in the air outside the building and was charged with disorderly conduct. In court, Lee said he paid for the protests by selling property he inherited in Hawaii, where he used to live.
Lee was found guilty and received a fine and probation. Lee served 14 days in jail, and a judge extended an order to stay away from the Discovery building.
That order expired Aug. 18.
