The FBI just can’t let go of the 2008 bombing of an Armed Forces Recruiting Station in Times Square in which no one was injured. The New York Field Office announced today that the reward has increased to up to $115,000 for information relating to the capture of the bomber.
Investigators revealed for the first time that they believe the bombing may be linked to two other unsolved bombings in New York City – one at the British Consulate in 2005 and the other at the Mexican Consulate in 2007. All three bombings were carried out in early morning hours by a person on a bicycle (in Times Square, it was a vintage blue Ross) dropping off a grenade-like homemade explosive at a political location. The FBI says they have identified several persons of interest in connection with the bombing.
“Someone knows those responsible for placing this device in the heart of New York City,” Diego Rodriguez, head of the FBI’s New York office, wrote in the statement. “We need those people to come forward to help us solve this crime before they can strike again.” They haven’t struck since March 6, 2008, and all three explosions caused no injuries and minimal damage.
An anarchist activist named Jerry Koch was imprisoned for 8 months in 2013 and 2014 for refusing to testify in a grand jury hearing related to the case. The judge who released him noted that his unconstitutional imprisonment had “caused his views about government repression to congeal even further.” If a mild-mannered guy like Koch would rather go to jail than testify, the FBI is going to have trouble solving this case, no matter how much money they offer.
(Photo: Federal Bureau of Investigation)
