The entire operation was a bogus one created by the ATF. If I remember right a jury found Randy Weaver not guilty of all charges except for failure to appear. He later sued and the Federal Government paid him and his family several million dollars.
The FBI was caught red handed violating their own policy and probably the law. The agents were given a reprimand which is normally a serious career killer, but in this case they were promoted months later.
This was under the Bush Sr. administration.
As I recall also, the original charge for the reason they went out to his place was because he sold a shotgun to an undercover ATF agent and then the undercover agent asked him to saw off the barrel (can anyone say entrapment?) which he did.
So the ATF sent their guys up to his place snooping around all because of selling a sawed off shotgun. It was a slow day at the office so they had to go out and make up a crime.