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Document: Oklahoma City Bombing Was Taped
AP via Yahoo! ^ | April 19, 2004 | John Solomon

Posted on 04/19/2004 1:23:06 PM PDT by RippleFire

WASHINGTON - A Secret Service document written shortly after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing described security video footage of the attack and witness testimony that suggested Timothy McVeigh (news - web sites) may have had accomplices at the scene.

"Security video tapes from the area show the truck detonation 3 minutes and 6 seconds after the suspects exited the truck," the Secret Service reported six days after the attack on a log of agents' activities and evidence in the Oklahoma investigation.

The government has insisted McVeigh drove the truck himself and that it never had any video of the bombing or the scene of the Alfred P. Murrah building in the minutes before the April 19, 1995, explosion.

Several investigators and prosecutors who worked the case told The Associated Press they had never seen video footage like that described in the Secret Service log.

The document, if accurate, is either significant evidence kept secret for nine years or a misconstrued recounting of investigative leads that were often passed by word of mouth during the hectic early days of the case, they said.

"I did not see it," said Danny Defenbaugh, the retired FBI (news - web sites) agent who ran the Oklahoma City probe. "If it shows what it says, then it would be significant."

Secret Service spokesman Charles Bopp declined to discuss the video footage reference, saying it would be addressed by witnesses later this week at the capital murder trial of McVeigh co-defendant Terry Nichols. "It is anticipated Secret Service employees will testify in court concerning these matters," he said.

Other documents obtained by AP show the Secret Service in late 1995 gave prosecutors several computer disks of enhanced digital photographs of the Murrah building, intelligence files on several subjects in the investigation and a file detailing an internal affairs inquiry concerning an agent who reconstructed key phone evidence against McVeigh.

"These abstract sheets are sensitive documents which we have protected from disclosure in the past," said a Secret Service letter that recounted discussions in late 1995 with federal prosecutors on what evidence would be turned over to defense lawyers.

Lawyers for Nichols say they have never been given the security video, photo disks or internal investigative file referenced in the documents.

The trial judge has threatened to dismiss the death penalty case if evidence was withheld. McVeigh was executed in 2001 on a separate federal conviction. Nichols was sentenced to life in prison on federal charges before being tried by the state this year.

The government has maintained for years that McVeigh parked the Ryder rental truck carrying a massive fertilizer bomb outside the Murrah building and left alone in a getaway car he parked around the corner. The bombing killed more than 160 people.

The only video prosecutors introduced at trial showed the Ryder truck without any visible passengers as it passed a security camera inside a high-rise apartment building a block away from the Murrah building.

But the Secret Service log reported on April 24 and April 25, 1995, that there was security footage showing the Ryder truck pulling up to the Murrah building. The log does not say where such video came from or who possessed it.

A log entry on April 25 states that the security footage allowed agents to determine the time that elapsed between suspects leaving the truck and the explosion.

An entry a day earlier on the same log reported that the security video was consistent with a witness' account that he saw McVeigh's getaway car in the lead before a woman guided the truck to its final parking spot in front of the Murrah building.

"A witness to the explosion named Grossman claimed to have seen a pale yellow Mercury car with a Ryder truck behind it pulling up to the federal building," the log said. The witness "further claimed to have seen a woman on the corner waving to the truck."

A Secret Service agent named McNally "noted that this fact is significant due to the fact that the security video shows the Ryder truck pulling up to the Federal Building and then pausing (7 to 10 seconds) before resuming into the slot in front of the building," the log said. "It is speculated that the woman was signaling the truck when a slot became available."

Defenbaugh said the FBI had talked to several witnesses suggesting two people had left the truck, but prosecutors never introduced the scenario at trial because it couldn't be corroborated. That's why a new security video would be significant, he said.

"It would have taken the investigation in a very specific direction," Defenbaugh said. "Rather than having to go down an eight-lane highway during rush hour, we would have gone down a faster path with just two or four lanes."

Defenbaugh said the FBI kept a log similar to the Secret Service document inside the Oklahoma City investigation command center that might help solve the mystery of the video. Justice officials declined to discuss documents, citing the ongoing Nichols' trial.

In addition to the witness mentioned in the Secret Service document, a woman working in Murrah's Social Security (news - web sites) office who was rescued from the rubble and a driver outside the building both reported to the FBI seeing two men leave the truck, according to government documents.

The Secret Service (news - web sites) log contained other information about the case — including that McVeigh made 30 calls to an Illinois gun dealer in the months before the attacks to seek dynamite and that the gun dealer subsequently failed a lie detector test. The Secret Service lost six employees in McVeigh's bombing, the single largest loss in agency history.

Nichols' attorneys last week asked the judge to dismiss the case on grounds the government withheld evidence, including the security video footage.

New documents obtained by AP show the Secret Service provided prosecutors other evidence that may not have been provided to defense lawyers, including a file showing the Secret Service agent who reconstructed crucial phone evidence against McVeigh was subjected to an internal affairs investigation and eventually cleared for her conduct in the case.

FBI officials say that file details allegations the agent wrongly collected grand jury-subpoenaed phone information about McVeigh's calls without FBI knowledge, and kept it for weeks while she produced analysis that helped the investigation.

The internal investigation caused complications for prosecutors. They decided it tainted the agent as a witness and they chose instead to hire an outside expert to re-do the phone analysis for trial, officials said.

Bopp said the Secret Service did nothing wrong.

"The Secret Service worked cooperatively with the FBI and other federal state and local law enforcement throughout the investigation," Bopp said. "The expertise of the Secret Service on electronic crimes and telecommunications provided unique and timely information to the ongoing investigation."

On the Net:

The FBI: http://www.fbi.gov

The documents obtained by The Associated Press can be viewed at http://wid.ap.org/documents/okc/okcdoc2.pdf


TOPICS: Breaking News; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events; US: Oklahoma
KEYWORDS: atf; ci; clintonfailure; clintonfailures; clintonlegacy; colbern; conspiracy; coverup; dea; defenbaugh; elohimcity; fbi; gorelick; grossman; howe; jaynadavis; johndoe2; mcnally; mcveigh; murrah; murrahbuilding; nichols; ok; okc; okcbombing; okcvideo; oklahoma; oklahomacity; secretservice; strassmeier; twa800; whitewash
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Well, that'll stir things up.
1 posted on 04/19/2004 1:23:09 PM PDT by RippleFire
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To: RippleFire
That certainly IS significant.
2 posted on 04/19/2004 1:26:46 PM PDT by nuconvert ("America will never be intimidated by thugs and assassins." ...( Azadi baraye Iran)
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To: RippleFire; BartMan1; Nailbiter
Well, duh. Everyone knows that talk radio caused the OKC bombing.

Bill Clinton said so.
3 posted on 04/19/2004 1:28:21 PM PDT by IncPen (Proud member of the Half Vast Right Wing Conspiracy)
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To: Big Giant Head
Thought you'd REALLY like to see this. It just keeps trickling out, huh? Wonder when TWA 800 news will start to seep out as well...
4 posted on 04/19/2004 1:29:27 PM PDT by Marie Antoinette (Happily repopulating the midwest since 1991! #7 William Elijah born 3-9-04)
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To: RippleFire
I saw OK Governor Frank Keating on Fox this morning and he assured me that no one else was involved. That's good enough for me and should be good enough for the rest of you, so move along...nothing to see here.

< /sarcasm >

5 posted on 04/19/2004 1:29:34 PM PDT by randog (Everything works great 'til the current flows.)
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To: RippleFire
Of course he had accomplices. No one has located the 3rd person besides Nicols and McVeigh. Plus the middle east connection has never been explained.
6 posted on 04/19/2004 1:30:21 PM PDT by lilylangtree (Veni, Vidi, Vici)
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To: RippleFire

THE OBSTRUCTION OF THE OKLAHOMA BOMBING GRAND JURY INVESTIGATION,
The Mysterious Jamie Gorelick Phone Call
By David Hoffman,Sun Sep 14 12:10:57 1997



7 posted on 04/19/2004 1:30:48 PM PDT by Diogenesis (We do what we are meant to do)
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To: RippleFire
Not only that but the person that rented the Ryder truck said on the witness stand that he saw John Doe #2 with Terry Nichols in his office. Here in Oklahoma we are getting news from the trial that the national media seems to be missing -- wonder why? Like I didn't know -- cover-up for the Clintons.

This whole thing is about to blow wide open if you ask me!
8 posted on 04/19/2004 1:31:05 PM PDT by PhiKapMom (AOII Mom -- Support Bush-Cheney '04 -- Losing is not an Option!)
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To: RippleFire
Wonder if Jamie Gorelick knows anything about this tape?
9 posted on 04/19/2004 1:32:24 PM PDT by teletech (Friends don't let friends vote DemocRAT!)
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To: RippleFire
There have been suggestions of security video, but denials by government officials.

If any do exist and they surface, they will see more faces than McVeigh and Nichols.

Jayne Davis was on FoxNews this morning giving an interview. She was very articulate, very knowledgeable, and very believable. She has been on this story since the early days after the bombing.

Someone named Gorelick (wonder who that is?????) apparently was instrumental in quelching any investigation into 'foreign' elements.
10 posted on 04/19/2004 1:33:12 PM PDT by TomGuy (Clintonites have such good hind-sight because they had their heads up their hind-ends 8 years.)
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To: Marie Antoinette
Wonder when TWA 800 news will start to seep out as well...


TWA800 - On Aug. 22, 1996, just before the Democratic National Convention,
Ms. Gorelick oversaw a critical Justice Department meeting with the FBI.
mmediately after this meeting, as it happened,
all serious inquiry into the fate of TWA 800 came to an end.

Gorelick was instrumental in the corruption of TWA Flight 800 terrorism investigation



11 posted on 04/19/2004 1:33:31 PM PDT by Diogenesis (We do what we are meant to do)
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To: RippleFire
The government has insisted McVeigh drove the truck himself

Clinton Administration logic: The government has insisted McVeigh drove the truck himself BUT THERE WERE THREE PEOPLE THAT GOT OUT.

Is this what is is?

12 posted on 04/19/2004 1:34:44 PM PDT by alrea (Mideast Peace = child bomber body parts)
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To: nuconvert; archy; okie01
Hmmm...interesting this comes from the Secret Service...not happy about having to be quiet before.

One of the witnesses said an "olive-skenned man" exited with McVeigh. She was reconditioned and made to seem a mental case by time of trial.
13 posted on 04/19/2004 1:36:25 PM PDT by Shermy
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To: TomGuy
>>Someone named Gorelick (wonder who that is?????) apparently was instrumental in quelching any investigation into 'foreign' elements.<<

No kidding?

Is this true, or just romor/gossip?

Shocked, I'm shocked I tell you.
14 posted on 04/19/2004 1:36:39 PM PDT by sissyjane (You're either with us or against us.)
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To: PhiKapMom
This is a bit off topic but I thought this might interest you ..........

Wanta know what happened to the folks that lost all those millions of industrial jobs?

Wanta know why there are not thousands at every Kerry Rally sobbing in fitful unison?

Wanta know why their sorry fate is not on CBS every evening with Dan Rather whimpering in the background?

Here is the 'tator take on the subject!

15 posted on 04/19/2004 1:40:11 PM PDT by Common Tator
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To: TomGuy
There have been suggestions of security video, but denials by government officials

There's other video, like the Subway shop security tape, that would show McVeigh Nichols and a third person together - but Nichols lawyers don't have an interest in that, naturally.

16 posted on 04/19/2004 1:40:13 PM PDT by Shermy
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To: RippleFire
And now for some coverup train wreck vanity humor!

(Sung to the classic Boxtops tune "The Letter")

Give me a ticket for an aeroplane. Ain’t got time to take a fast train.
Surveillance ops are gone, I’m a going home, cuz Jamie just wrote me a letter.

Wonder why these pilots don't know how to land? My right hand ain't talkin to my left hand.
Evidence is gone, someone's on the phone, cuz Jamie, she wrote me a letter.

Well she wrote me a letter, said I couldn’t talk to nobody no more.
Listen lady can’t you see I got to get back to my agents once more?
Anyway, Yeah

Someone shot a missile at an aeroplane. Suddenly it was just a fuel tank.
Time for movin on, vapor musta blown, cuz Jamie just wrote me a letter.

Then there was the Oklahoma City thing. Wonder why Tim would give Iraq a ring?
Evidence is blown, militia nuts alone, cuz Jamie, she wrote me a letter.

Well she wrote me a letter, said I could not investigate it no more.
We got the perps, thank you so please throw that other stuff right out the door.
Anyway Yeah

Looks like Ashcroft done kicked a hornet's nest. Maybe now we'll see what caused this whole mess,
Cuz soon she will be gone, Jamie's going home, the Chairman he wrote her a letter.
The Chairman, he wrote her a letter...

17 posted on 04/19/2004 1:45:33 PM PDT by Sender (Gorelick Knew!)
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To: RippleFire
I am not a conspiracy freak, but sooner or later we'll (not the guvament) have this all figured out and there's gonna be lots of screaming and yelling for heads to roll. Same for TWA800, Waco and Ruby Ridge.
18 posted on 04/19/2004 1:45:36 PM PDT by upchuck (Message to Senator John F'ing sKerry: Egotism is the anesthetic that dulls the pain of stupidity.)
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To: sissyjane
Oklahoma City, TWA Flight 800, and the Gorelick connection
      Posted by TomGuy to OPS4
On News/Activism 04/16/2004 9:36:06 AM CDT #12 of 55

Although Davis does not document Gorelick's role in Oklahoma City, media accounts routinely describe her as the director of the Oklahoma City task force, the so-called "field commander." As Davis has told me [Jack Cashill], someone in Washington called the FBI in Oklahoma City and issued a two-word directive on its investigation into Islamic terrorism: "Kill it."

19 posted on 04/19/2004 1:45:55 PM PDT by TomGuy (Clintonites have such good hind-sight because they had their heads up their hind-ends 8 years.)
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To: PhiKapMom
Thank the dumbass RATs for putting Gorelick on the Commission. That was the biggest screw-up they have had in a long time even if the RATmedia is suppressing the memo's implications and relevence.

In the lone-nut scenario when did McVeigh park the get away car nearby and how did he get back to the truck?
20 posted on 04/19/2004 1:46:10 PM PDT by justshutupandtakeit (America's Enemies foreign and domestic RATmedia agree: Bush must be destroyed.)
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