[Updated at 12:06 p.m. ET] Five men have been arrested on suspicion of trying to use what they thought were explosives to destroy a bridge near Cleveland, Ohio, the FBI said Tuesday morning.
Some of the men on Monday planted what they thought were two remotely activated C-4-based explosive devices - which they allegedly bought from an undercover FBI employee - at the base of a Route 82 bridge that crosses from Brecksville to Sagamore Hills over the Cuyahoga Valley National Park, the FBI said in a news conference Tuesday.
The devices actually were inoperable and posed no threat to the public, and the FBI arrested the men shortly after the devices were planted, authorities said.
Douglas L. Wright, 26; Brandon L. Baxter, 20; and Anthony Hayne, 35, were arrested by the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force on Monday evening on charges of conspiracy and attempted use of explosive materials to damage physical property affecting interstate commerce, the FBI said.
Also arrested were Connor C. Stevens, 20; and Joshua S. Stafford, 23. Their charges were pending.
Three of the men are self-proclaimed anarchists, the FBI said in a news release.
"The public was never in danger from explosive devices," the FBI said.
The group initially planned to "topple financial institution signs atop high rise buildings in downtown Cleveland" while co-conspirators used smoke grenades to distract law enforcement, according to the FBI. But the plot evolved into plans for using explosive to destroy bridges or other targets, and the group finally decided on the Brecksville-Northfield High Level Bridge, which carries Route 82 over the national park, the FBI said.
Some of the defendants, after they planted the devices, intended to detonate them from a remote location that they believed was safe and could provide them with an alibi, authorities said at Tuesday's news conference.
The FBI learned of the plots through a confidential source who met Wright at a Cleveland-area protest event in November, according to a criminal complaint filed in U.S. district court. Wright told the source that Wright and a group of anarchists "had been discussing plans involving violence and destruction to physical property ... to send a message to corporations and the United States government," the complaint reads.
“The complaint in this case alleges that the defendants took specific and defined actions to further a terrorist plot,” U.S. Attorney Steven M. Dettelbach said in the news release. “The defendants stand charged based not upon any words or beliefs they might espouse, but based upon their own plans and actions.”
FULL STORY
Why not just execute them now? They are obviously worthless people. Just take them out of their own misery.
Since no one was injured...they'll live another day ...and will STILL be a danger when they're released. Let's hope they don't have enough brains in the future than they displayed now. ( Really, contacting an undercover agent ? How dumb does a person have to be ? )
What they didn't tell you on this site is that they also planned to blow up bank signs on buildings. I like how they call them "anarchists" when they are really RADICAL LEFT WING TERRORISTS!
Isn't that what an anarchist is?
huh isnt that the same thing?
What's also obvious is that you didn't read the article, troll.
"Anarchists" = occupiers.
And with today being their big day, you can bet that there is some kind of tie, relationship, or motivation between these guys and the movement.
"Anarchists" = occupiers.
And with today being their big day, you can bet that there is some kind of tie, relationship, or motivation between these guys and the movement.
Ha,ha, what does that mean..oh okay. The guy on the right's sister went to high school with a guy whose cousin was married to woman whose first husband was an occupier. there's the relationship. By gosh, you're right!
Actually they wanted to be rockstars but it didn't quite worked that way, and turned out this ugly one.
finally, a terror attempt NOT caused by muslims.
Thanks Dems and Obama for fueling this fire. Hope you're proud.
lol...Brian...what an idiot. Yes, Obama is repsonsible for the anarchist movement. LMFAO
Ah yes, the classic "it must be Obama's fault" post. Was hoping I didn't have to scroll quite so far to get to the first one... but there you go, at least it's on the first page. Seriously, you need to do some learnin' before espousing your dime-store socioeconomic and political analysis in a public space. You might actually learn that the world works a lot differently than you've been led to believe.
Look at these white christian terrorists!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Christian terrorists? Ummm, I would be surprised if any of those guys had been seen in Sunday school recently...
5 less Obama voters.........Way to Progressives and OWS.
anarchists don't vote...they are anarchists
Tea Partiers Gone Wild! Nice work FBI.
Anarchists. The FBI - or someone IN the FBI - did this for the express purpose of discouraging participation in May Day.
Yeah, right. Sure they did. Did your tinfoil hat tell you this?
Whatever, I guess you weren't at the trailer when they did the raid.
No. It was done for the express purpose of protecting the public. A good job. These guys are going to jail for a long time. Their main problem is that they can't compete for women. So lash out at the society.
They bought the "explosives" from an undercover agent. They are guilty.......Fry them all and require their parents to be there to watch.
No appeals....No using tax dollars to cloth, feed and shelter them for the next 50 years........just fry them on national tv.....
What losers, but those mugshots are priceless lol
Oops the bank signs are now in the article. My bad. Where are all of the lefties that were calling them names earlier indicating that they were right wing liberals? Once again...They are Radical Left Wing Terrorists.
they all look stupid
If they are leftists of course they are stupid.. .and lazy.
So, which country we are attacking next?