Posted on 06/06/2002 8:13:31 PM PDT by HAL9000
MUSKOGEE, Okla. (AP) -- A man who showed up at last month's deadly bridge collapse in eastern Oklahoma claiming to be an Army officer may be a Missouri ex-convict with a history of impersonation, according to a newspaper report.
The FBI is investigating the man who arrived in Webbers Falls two hours after a barge struck the Interstate 40 bridge and caused it to tumble into the Arkansas River, killing 14 people. The man, dressed in fatigues and a beret, identified himself as Capt. William Clark from Fort Carson, Colo.
A Missouri law officer and a relative of the man believe he may be Billy Clark, a resident of Tallapoosa, Mo., the Muskogee Daily Phoenix reported in Thursday's editions.
Officials at Fort Carson said they had no record of Clark. FBI spokesman Gary Johnson would not confirm to The Associated Press late Thursday if Billy Clark was the man under investigation.
Billy Clark got out of a Missouri prison six months ago, Alan Clark, the man's uncle, told the Phoenix. Alan Clark said his brother and nephew have the same name, and that the elder Clark was once in the military.
"Billy wears his dad's clothes and uniforms and charges motel rooms to the U.S. government,'' Alan Clark told the newspaper. "He has even charged hospital stays to the government. He never pays for a meal.
"He'll go into a restaurant and say he's a firefighter and they paid for 10 meals and only got eight. He's unbelievable.''
Van Buren, Ark., police believe the man showed up at a motel there on May 28, two days after the bridge collapse, saying he was helping with the disaster and needed eight rooms. He stayed in one of the rooms and put "Do Not Disturb'' signs on the other rooms, which were never occupied.
The man didn't pay the $900 bill for the rooms, Van Buren police Lt. Brent Grill said.
While in Webbers Falls, the man told the town's mayor, Jewell Horne, that he was in charge and that Army Capt. Andrew Clements had died in the river.
At that time, no vehicles or bodies had been recovered, Horne said. The body of Clements, 35, of Woodbridge, Va., was recovered late Sunday afternoon.
Authorities aren't sure if there's a connection between Clark and Clements.
A fisherman who found Clements' belongings gave them to a Webbers Falls police officer, who later gave them to Clark. According to Muskogee County Sheriff's Deputy Steve Wright, Clark took the briefcase into an office at a local restaurant.
Witnesses said that while there, he spread papers from the briefcase out to dry and examined Clements' dog tags. Horne said that after Clark went through the briefcase, he had her lock it in a safe.
Horne and others eventually became suspicious of the man, and Horne said she told him the Monday following the collapse that he was not in charge, unless the governor declared martial law. Horne said he left that Monday night.
"I know the police carried him (Clark) out of here,'' said resident Lottie Hufford, who was photographed with Clark while at the site. "He had at least three file folders with him -- he didn't give them up.''
Hufford said the man gave her his grandmother's address in Tallapoosa. A National Guard representative picked up the photos and negatives for the FBI investigation, she said.
Bertha Weaver, former police chief in Tallapoosa, said Billy Clark spent time in her town staying at his grandmother's residence.
"He's a con and he's good at it,'' Weaver told the Phoenix. "He can get money ... any place.''
Weaver described Clark as being in his late 20s to early 30s, standing 5-foot-11 to 6-2 and weighing about 180 to 200 pounds. He has light, sandy red hair and a muscular build.
Copyright 2002 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
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FBI investigates Army imposter (re: interstate bridge collapse) News Oklahoma | June 5, 2002 | AP
Posted on 6/6/02 12:52 AM Eastern by Prodigal Daughter
FBI investigates Army imposter
2002-06-05
By The Associated Press
The FBI is investigating a man who called himself an Army captain and looked through a briefcase and laptop computer belonging to a victim of last month's deadly interstate bridge collapse.
The man, wearing fatigues and a beret, showed up within two hours of the Interstate 40 collapse and told the mayor he was in charge. He identified himself as Capt. William Clark.
Mayor Jewell Horne said Wednesday that the man told her Army Capt. Andrew Clements had died in the river and that his briefcase and laptop were in the water. A fisherman found the items the day of the collapse and gave them to a Webbers Falls police officer.
The officer gave the items to Clark, who took them and went through them, the mayor said. He brought the briefcase and computer to city hall later that day and asked the mayor to lock them in a safe.
He wanted the key, but Horne said she refused to give it to him.
"He kept trying to say that he was in charge," Horne said. "I finally looked at him and said, 'No, you're not. Until the governor declares martial law, you are not in charge in this town.'"
The mysterious man left Webbers Falls on Monday night, she said.
The mayor said it was eerie that the man knew Clements was among the victims even before his body was recovered.
"But he was correct," she said. "There was a Capt. Clements. There was a briefcase and there was a computer."
Clements, 35, of Woodbridge, Va., was among 14 people killed May 26 when a barge hit the Interstate 40 bridge, causing it to topple into the Arkansas River.
Horne said she was so busy answering phones and directing rescuers that she "didn't have time to think a lot" or check the man's credentials. Two volunteers from the Tulsa medical examiner's office eventually called authorities to check on him, she said.
The FBI, the Army and police in Van Buren and Fort Smith, Ark., are looking for the man, said FBI spokesman Gary Johnson. He said the man obtained goods and services by impersonating a rescue worker.
"It's certainly a very intense investigation," Johnson said.
Authorities are looking into whether the man stayed at a hotel in Van Buren, Ark., free under the auspices of taking part in the rescue operation.
The man also told an Associated Press reporter his name was Capt. William Clark and that he was from Fort Carson, Colo. The fort has no record of the man, said spokeswoman Kim Tisor.
"I PITY DA FOOOOOOL!"
Witnesses said that while there, he spread papers from the briefcase out to dry and examined Clements' dog tags. Horne said that after Clark went through the briefcase, he had her lock it in a safe.
Horne and others eventually became suspicious of the man, and Horne said she told him the Monday following the collapse that he was not in charge, unless the governor declared martial law. Horne said he left that Monday night.
"I know the police carried him (Clark) out of here,'said resident Lottie Hufford, who was photographed with Clark while at the site. "He had at least three file folders with him -- he didn't give them up.'
This goes a long way towards some speculations of mine on yesterday's thread. Him having to spread out the docs to dry aswelas removing three file folders
What doesn't go well is the impersonator story -- for some guy in a uniform just showing up two hours after the fact and knowing of the breifcase and documents . . . .
Another aside we have the Police the troopers and the FBI don't you think that MP's CID and the NSA would show up?
Strange that there is nomention or quotes from these people
I maintain that this entire incident stinks and is more than likely a cover story -- in which the why's are much more important than the events
Billy bump
The barge knocked out the west side of the bridge. Capt. Clements was driving from California to Virginia, from west to east.
There was a large traffic jam at the bridge after the incident. If I understand correctly, the main detour to cross the river around the damaged bridge currently takes about sixty minutes.
Billy Clark's place of residence -Tallapoosa, Mo. - is on the eastern side of Missouri, near Tennessee. There is no way he could have driven from Tallapoosa to the other side of that bridge in Oklahoma in two hours.
"Capt. William Clark" was probably west of the bridge when the barge hit it.
Looking at a map, it's the eastbound detour that probably takes sixty minutes. The westbound detour is much shorter.
I read the article in the Muskogee paper. The wife took it to work and left it there. I live in Muskogee County.
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