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OU bomber left a final message: 'None of you are worth living with'

By Nolan Clay
The Oklahoman

The University of Oklahoma student who blew himself up Oct. 1 used the Internet to research bomb-making, had experimented setting off bombs and left a computer message that read, "None of you are worth living with," the FBI reported.

The FBI reported finding "explosive experiments and paraphernalia" and 0.4 pound of a white powder that turned out to be TATP -- the same volatile high explosive used in the London subway bombings -- in a search of his Norman apartment.

Joel "Joe" Henry Hinrichs III, an engineering student, died when his bomb went off about 100 yards from OU's packed football stadium during the second quarter of OU's night game against Kansas State.

New details emerged Friday when U.S. Magistrate Valerie Couch made public the records on the FBI search of Hinrichs' apartment, his e-mail account and nine OU computers.

Federal prosecutors told the magistrate "there is no longer any necessity" for the documents to remain sealed.

FBI officials have said in the past that the probe did not uncover any links between the student and terrorist organizations. They have said they may never know whether the student wanted to get inside the stadium.

Hinrichs, 21, was from Colorado Springs, Colo. He had a reputation as a loner who was fascinated with ammunition and bombs.

The FBI found in his apartment mixing bowls, a slow cooker, a thermometer, plastic containers, a hobby fuse, a circuit board, six tape rolls, chemicals used to make TATP and TATP itself.

TATP, triacetone triperoxide, is made from hydrogen peroxide and acetone. An Oklahoma City police bomb technician, who was not involved in the investigation, told The Oklahoman the amount still in the apartment was enough to "very easily take both your hands off."

During the search of Hinrichs' apartment after the blast, the FBI found the student's laptop computer was still on and had on the screen notes apparently written by Hinrichs to himself, the records show. At the cursor was a phrase that began with profanity and continued " ... all this. None of you are worth living with. You can all kiss my ass."

The FBI also found Hinrichs downloaded from the Internet "numerous text and image files" on weapons and explosives, including one on TATP four days before his death.

One video on his computer depicted a lighted match being placed above a white powder, then a bright flash.

The FBI reported a student, Lawrence R. Kincheloe III, told agents Hinrichs liked explosives, frequently experimented with building and detonating explosive devices, and once showed off a detonator.

Kincheloe and Hinrichs belonged to the Triangle Fraternity, an organization of engineers, architects and scientists

"Kincheloe told the agents that Hinrichs would drive out to remote areas to try to detonate bombs, but that he never accompanied Hinrichs," the FBI reported. "Kincheloe stated Hinrichs did show him the remains of some ... devices he detonated, which Kincheloe described as pieces of plastic soda bottles."

Hinrichs' roommate, Fazal Cheema, told agents the two had lived together since June 6 but did not socialize. Cheema said Hinrichs had responded to his Internet ad for a roommate.

Cheema also said Hinrichs was quiet and kept to himself. He told agents he did not know of Hinrichs' interest in bombs.

A bombing witness, bus driver Donald Wayne Laughlin, reported seeing Hinrichs "hunched" over on a park bench, leaning over a backpack on his lap, just before the explosion. The driver said he walked on and looked back to the bench after the explosion in time to see "a cloud of gray smoke as well as a human arm."

The FBI reported the backpack had to be destroyed later to be made safe after an X-ray showed a meter device and tools.

Found at the blast site were a chemistry book, a crescent wrench, a white sock with at least two protruding wires, a screwdriver with a sock stuffed in the handle, a large number of unused wooden matches, and an empty match box, the records show.

Also found was a pen with an attached razor and a nine-volt battery. Behind the bench was a black plastic container with "Cross Country" and "lubricant" on the label. On the bench was a pink pen with two protruding wires and on the sidewalk was a green circuit board.

The student's father, Joel Hinrichs Jr., said again Friday his son intended to kill only himself. He is still waiting for the release of his son's remains, after DNA testing is completed. He plans to cremate the body.

The father, who was shown photos of his son's body by the FBI, said, "He sat there on the bench with one arm wrapped around the explosive looped around his neck and the other hand holding some kind of device to make it go off."

Contributing: s Randy Ellis and Ken Raymond

EXPLOSIVES FOUND IN OU STUDENT APARTMENT
Joel Hinrichs Killed Himself October 1st. FBI Conducts Search Of Mans Apartment.

by Jeffrey Orman

KRDO-TV Ch. 13 - Colorado Springs

11/19/2005

FBI AGENTS RELEASE DOCUMENTS UNCOVERING MORE INFORMATION ABOUT AN OKLAHOMA STUDENT WHO TOOK HIS OWN LIFE LAST MONTH.

JOEL HENRY HINRICHS OF COLORADO SPRINGS DIED OCTOBER 1ST AFTER HE BLEW HIMSELF UP OUTSIDE THE OU STADIUM OCTOBER 1ST.

ACCORDINGTO FBI AGENTS HINRICHS USED THE SAME EXPLOSVIES THAT WERE USED IN THE SUICIDE BOMBINGS IN LONDON.
THE DOCUMENTS WERE RELEASED FRIDAY AFTER
WARRANTS WERE USED TO SEARCH HINRICHS APARTMENT IN OKLAHOMA. A FELLOW STUDENT TOLD INVESTIGATORS THAT HINRICH LIKED EXPLOSIVES AND EXPERIMENTED WITH BUILDING AND DETONATING DEVICES.

THE FBI SAYS THERE APPEARS TO BE NO CONNECTION BETWEEN HINRICHS AND A TERRORIST ORGANIZATION.

"The student's father, Joel Hinrichs Jr., said again Friday his son intended to kill only himself."

Meanwhile, on the bomber's computer these words were found:

"At the cursor was a phrase that began with profanity and continued " ... all this. None of you are worth living with. You can all kiss my ass."

So that sounds like bomber-boy wanted to just kill himself?

"None of you are worth living with. You can all kiss my ass."

And this proves he intended to commit suicide? Someone depressed enough to want to kill himself usually feels his life isn't worth living, not that other people aren't worth living with. His decision to commit suicide is based on his perception of the lack of value of his own life. Hinrich's statement is strange because he doesn't refer to his own life as not worth living. Instead, he denigrates other people as not being worth living with. So his statement could be interpreted as meaning he wanted to do away with those who weren't worth his living with.