First Suicide Bomber since 9/11?

You decide..

Published on October 6, 2005 By ShadowWar In Current Events

Joel H. Hinrichs III, the OU student who blew himself up outside of an OU-KSU football game on Saturday (10/01/05) night was the first suicide bomber on US soil since 9-11. Is this the case or is it a simple* suicide?

There are many things that have come out since that bombing that are indicating that this was more than just a young man wanting to end his life. Lets look at what has been said and what those things may indicate.

First does a person wanting to commit suicide do it by blowing themselves up? No. The vast majority of suicides are done with firearms or narcotics. People just do not blow themselves up as a method of suicide. In addition if they were going to commit suicide they also do not do it in front of a stadium with 85,000 people in it. The vast majority do it in private and do not want anyone else to get hurt.

Here are a few items that I was able to find by searching and reading and watching all the news clips and articles written since Sat.

The Scene:
Why 100 yards from the stadium? Why not in the privacy of a field or some remote location. He was supposedly sitting on a bench when he “spontaneously exploded”. It is reported in several news clips and articles that he attempted to get into the game (some say twice) before he fled the stadium because security wanted to search a “backpack” he was carrying. Was he trying to get into the stadium to kill others with his bomb. Why would he later blow himself up outside the stadium? It just does not sound like a man who wants to commit suicide goes to a football game to watch it then afterwards would blow himself up. There are not a whole lot of reasons he would have tried to get into the stadium other than to cause others to be killed or injured when he blew himself up.

It is also being said in some reports that there was shrapnel used in the bomb he exploded. That would indicate to me that it was designed to injure more than just the bomber. And again if he was wanting to commit suicide, most do not want to harm others also.

The location and timing are just not right. Where is the suicide note that most people leave explaining their actions?

Then there are the reports (now by more than one person) that the bomber tried to buy a “large quantity” of ammonium nitrate. The same explosive used in the OK City bombing. Why would he try to buy a large amount if he was wanting to just blow himself up? This does not make sense.

There were other reports of bomb making equipment found in his apartment. What for? Why make more than you need if you are going to commit suicide? I would think you would make just one bomb and that would be it. Why the extra stuff?

One of the local TV News Stations (TV5) says that there are others being reported to them as “being involved”. Why others are involved in a suicide bombing? Sounds fishy to me.

It is reported in his apartment was a airplane ticket to Algiers for a future date in the name of his roommate. An attempt to escape?

And one of the most important items is his possible tie to a local mosque.

Now taken individually these items may not add up to much. But when all are taken together what do you think happened there? You need to keep an eye on this. Is this the beginning of a new type of attack on Americans in the US? I pray not, but I have to say, I think he was not just some young disgruntled man that want to take himself out. I think we have our first suicide bomber in the US since 9/11. And I think more will follow.

Links to news sources and stories used above:

http://www.officer.com/article/article.jsp?id=26283&siteSection=1
http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/124635.php
http://bellaciao.org/en/article.php3?id_article=8599
http://powerlineblog.com/archives/011883.php
http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/124154.php
http://lonestartimes.com/2005/10/04/boomer-sooner/
http://www.channeloklahoma.com/news/5046390/detail.html
http://www.townhall.com/blogs/c-log/MaryKatharineHam/story/2005/10/04/159384.html

Comments

Demosthenes Locke

on Oct 06, 2005

Sounds like he had a plan, and messed up a bit with the explosives. Maybe he was sitting on the bench trying to figure out a way into the stadium, or another place that he could leav it, and the bomb unexpectedly went off too soon, killing him in the process.

Since he was carrying it in a backpack, and on account of the plane ticket, it sounds more like he intended to leave the bomb behind and skee-daddle. If it were really a suicide bombing attack, why not just attach the explosives to his body. The only college football game I've been to there was no one frisking people as they entered, but they were indeed checking bags.

Certainly sounds fishy as a suicide, though.

Dr Guy

on Oct 06, 2005

I think DL summed it up very well. But I got to ask.

Was he French?

ParaTed2k

on Oct 06, 2005

Also, Joel "Joe" Henry Hinrichs III attended a Norman, Okla., mosque near his university-owned apartment – the same one attended by Zacharias Moussaoui, the only person charged in connection with the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, according to a report by KWTV-News 9 in Oklahoma City.

"Prior to the game, the entire stadium was swept by the expert bomb teams with the help of dogs," the statement said.

Link

Doug Hagmann, a seasoned investigator, told WND he was informed by multiple reliable law-enforcement sources familiar with the investigation into the incident that authorities recovered a "significant amount" of "jihad" materials, as well as Hinrichs' computer. Link

Local and federal agents were carting away what was described as a huge cache of explosives from the apartment of the 21-year-old student who blew himself up outside the stadium where 84,000 watched a Sooners football game.

Link

Yeah, all that sounds like a simple "suicide" to me!

Good Point

on Oct 06, 2005

I was surprised someone hadn't blogged about this earlier. A video I saw yesterday showed the apartment complex where Hinrichs lived was across the street from the infamous Norman mosque.

I'm getting the feeling this incident is very similar to the July 21st failed bombings in London, only in this instance the bomb went off prematurely and actually killed the man carrying it.

This is being kept too hush hush by the national media for my liking.

LINK:News 9 Oklahoma Report

Dr Guy

on Oct 06, 2005

I was surprised someone hadn't blogged about this earlier.

None of us know everything, but together, we can get pretty damn close.

drmiler

on Oct 07, 2005

Then there are the reports (now by more than one person) that the bomber tried to buy a “large quantity” of ammonium nitrate. The same explosive used in the OK City bombing. Why would he try to buy a large amount if he was wanting to just blow himself up? This does not make sense.

You are falling for the media spin on this compound. Ammonium nitrate in and off itself is "not" an explosive. It's fertilizer. From wikipedia:

The chemical compound ammonium nitrate, the nitrate of ammonia with chemical formula NH4NO3, is commonly used in agriculture as a high-nitrogen fertilizer.

Now it "can be" used as an explosive but not by itself. To be used as an explosive you have to add fuel to it (as in diesel or kerosene.)

ShadowWar

on Oct 07, 2005

Hey Doc,

Actually I am not falling for anything, actually just the opposite. I know what the chemical is and what it is used for, actually have used it myself in small amounts. The fact is that he tried to buy large (thats the reported word used) amounts and was denied by the person selling it. Why would a college kid, living in an apartment, want it? I know you have to mix fuel oil with it to make it explosive. That is exactly what the OK City bombers did. When taken in itself, thats not a huge deal, but taken with all the other factors in this case (he did blow himself up with a home made explosive) then its important. Was he trying to buy the AN to make a much larger bomb for some other reason? Thats the question it raises.

Oh and Doc, one of the things they teach us to make bombs from in the Army IED classes is AN. ANd other household stuff that really goes bang when mixed together.

Police Confirm Oklahoma Bomber Under Investigation(Norman, OK) Norman, Oklahoma, police confirmed in a press conference today that JOEL HENRY HINRICHS III was being investigated because he had acted suspiciously while attempting to buy ammonium nitrate fertilizer at an area store. Channel 5 Oklahoma:At a 2 p.m. news conference, Norman Police Department spokesman J.D. Younger said an off-duty, plainclothes officer overheard a conversation Joel Henry Hinrichs III had with the proprietor of a Norman feed store last Thursday at 4 p.m. The conversation centered on a purchase of ammonium nitrate fertilizer."I think it's important to note that it's not a criminal activity to purchase ammonium nitrate fertilizer," Younger said.However, he noted that the context of Hinrichs' conversation with a manager of Ellison Feed & Seed was suspicious. Younger indicated that the off-duty officer reported that Hinrichs asked about different types of fertilizer and the concentration of ammonium nitrate in each.

and then there is of course this little tidbit that makes it look even more like a terrorist attempt:

Indictment Forthcoming in Oklahoma Bombing? An attorney for the Justice Department made an unusual statement today about the possibility of forthcoming arrests in the Oklahoma suicide-bombing case. Last Saturday, Joel Henry Hinrichs III blew himself up outside of a University of Oklahoma football game. The FBI quickly stated that there was no evidence of a wider conspiracy.However, WND reports this today (via Reaganites Unite):The warrant used to execute a search of Oklahoma University bomber Joel "Henry" Hinrichs III's apartment, where an undetermined amount of explosives were found, has been sealed by a federal court at the request of the Justice Department.A sealed warrant on top of the fact that the investigation is being led by the FBI's joint terrorism task-force may be an indication that the FBI is considering the possibility of a wider conspiracy after all.Neighbors of Hinrichs allege that he was a frequent visitor to a nearby mosque, but the leader of the University of Oklahoma Muslim Student Association denies this. Hinrichs' roommate was a Pakistani national and sources claim jihad materials were found in Hinrichs' room.Hinrichs was also under investigation by local police authorities because he had recently attempted to buy ammonium nitrate, a key ingredient in large bombs of the type used in the 1995 Oklahoma City Murrah bombing and the first World Trade Center bombing. Hinrichs killed himself before the investigation could be completed.

http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/archives/124832.php

Again it goes back to taking all the parts and putting them together. If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, then well.....

drmiler

on Oct 07, 2005

Oh and Doc, one of the things they teach us to make bombs from in the Army IED classes is AN. ANd other household stuff that really goes bang when mixed together.

I know that. I have 2 books in my possession that "most" people aren't even aware they exist. "The CIA"s Black book of Improvised Munitions" parts 1 & 2. Now did you also know there are 2 "grades" of AN? Agricultural and "technical" grades. The technical grade is preferred because it is more porous and absorbs other chemicals more readily. But on the other hand it is waaaay more difficult to procure.

ShadowWar

on Oct 08, 2005

I am not talking about the bombs themselves, I am talking about this young mans motives and intent. The fact he even inquired about it and asked about the content of the AN in the fert makes it all the more suspect.

ShadowWar

on Oct 30, 2005

I guess some other people think it may have been a suicide bomber also. Got this today.

Illinois State Police
Office of Counter-Terrorism
Statewide Terrorism Intelligence Center (STIC)
Information Alert
Suicide Bombers on Campus
The information contained in this Alert is being provided due to the recent suicide bombing which occurred
on October 1, 2005, at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma. A 21-year-old engineering
student attached explosives to himself, approached to within 100 yards of a packed stadium of 80,000 and
just before half-time detonated the explosives killing himself. The investigation is ongoing. The
information below provides a list of indicators that may assist in identifying suicide bombers and actions
that must be taken.
How To Identify A Suicide Bomber?
• Appearance: wearing loose or bulky clothing inconsistent with current weather conditions,
protruding bulges or exposed wires under clothing, chemical burns on clothing or stained hands,
odd hair color (chemical effects), head band with Arabic writing, bulky backpacks.
• Behavior: repeatedly circling an area on foot or in a car, pacing back and forth in front of a venue,
glancing left and right while walking slowly, fidgeting with something under his or her clothes,
exhibiting an unwillingness to make eye contact, sweating, mumbling, the appearance of being
drugged (enlarged pupils, fixed stare, erratic behavior), tunnel vision, attempts to gain a position
near crowds.
• Smell: too much cologne or perfume (used to overcome the smell of chemicals), talcum powder,
scented water (used for ritual purification), strange chemical odors such as chlorine.
• Vehicle: front and back license plates that look forged, do not match or are missing, prolonged
parking in a non-parking location, parking in a central strategic location, the vehicle’s rear part sags
noticeably. Bicycles may also be used to hide improvised explosive devices (IEDs).
• Residence: gathering of many individuals in one residence, conducting group prayer from
residence, different individuals frequently entering and leaving the residence, sour smell from
presence of chemicals, unusual items such as incubators and dehydrators.
10/08/2005 2
Ingredients Used By Suicide Bombers
The discovery of any combination of the materials and items listed below indicate that an attack is in
planning:
• gristmills
• grinder banks
• bottles of urine
• chemicals (TATP, TNT, Chlorine, Hydrogen Peroxide, PETN)
• large quantities of fertilizer
• detonators
• wire
• nails
• cell phones
• pipes
What To Do In Case You Observe Suspicious Activity?
It is imperative that law enforcement entities are notified when a combination of indicators described above
are discovered on your campus. The following may assist the security personnel in coordinating with the
law enforcement agencies:
• Call your local police department and give the operator as many details as possible about the
suspect, their residence and the vehicle.
• While speaking to the operator, try to keep an eye on the suspect or vehicle from a safe distance.
• Wait for the arrival of the police forces.
The Statewide Terrorism & Intelligence Center (STIC) will continue to provide updates to the educational
community on any threats that may affect that sector. University police, security officers, and educational
officials should remain vigilant to recognizing possible threats, and immediately report these to their local
police department.

Kind of interesting huh!?! If it was not a suicide bomber why the alert information? Yo make up your own mind.

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