Yesterday, the FBI and Police held a news conference about the 4 year old "Collar Bomber" case.  And as has long been suspected, Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong and Kenneth Barnes were charged in the crime.

Both are already in prison, Marjorie for the murder of her ex-bf, who was found in her freezer.  Kenneth was in jail for unrelated drug charges.  However, they also named Brian Wells as a co-conspiritor in the case.  Some of the evidence they brought up had been puzzling people since the incident occured.  And another was something that was not released until yesterday.

One thing that had long puzzled people was "Why would people who put a bomb around his neck give him a shotgun?"  That seems like a rather stupid thing to do, since somebody who is totally desperate might well have shot one or more of them.

Another was something that the police had kept secret until yesterday.  While being questioned before the bomb went off, Brian told the police that he had been accosted by 2 black men.  Yet all the evidence points to Kenneth Barnes, James Roden (who was found dead in Marjorie's freezer), William Rothstein (who died of cancer the next year) and Floyd Stockton (who has turned state evidence for immunity) as the true masterminds.  Floyd stated that Brian Wells was involved in the planning, but that he was not aware that a real bomb would be placed around his neck.

  Interesting.  This thing always pissed me off, but I haven't heard anything about it in awhile...

  The plot thickens.  Mr. Wells was doublecrossed..?

  I'll read up a little more before voting...

 

I thought there was something fishy about that story when it was first in the news.  Then I forgot about it.  Yeah, Wells was in on it.  Stupid people who think they're clever sometimes get themselves killed!
::)

I thought there was something fishy about that story when it was first in the news.  Then I forgot about it.  Yeah, Wells was in on it.  Stupid people who think they're clever sometimes get themselves killed!
::)


   Now that I think about it (and even without reading about it) I can start to see what they were up to...

   Quite the inventive buggers, no..?

   Dumbasses...
   

   Now that I think about it (and even without reading about it) I can start to see what they were up to...

   Quite the inventive buggers, no..?

   Dumbasses...
   

People say criminals are stupid, but that's only because you never know the smart ones are criminals!
:o

People say criminals are stupid, but that's only because you never know the smart ones are criminals!
:o


  Heh...

  Stupid criminals get caught.  Smart ones roam around, getting various lucrative appointments in government...

I'm not sure on this.  They said way back that Wells was developmentally delayed.  People like that can be made to do stupid stuff, I know because my son is delayed and I know quite a few adults who are similar and could be duped into something like this.  They haven't presented any evidence that he consorted with these people at all.  I would like to know the extent of his delay, that would answer a lot of questions. Also, the cops have to take the heat for letting him sit there for what was it, over a half hour, before they even put in a call to the bomb squad, what was that all about? 

I didn't hear Wells was handicapped, that changes things a bit.

involved or not, he was moving around a lot when the collar bomb exploded. I'm not sure if staying completely still would have helped, or if a bomb squad would have been able to diffuse it, He was trying to slide around while seated on the ground and it detonated.

I wonder what happened to the video of the bomb going off?  I woulda expected it to have shown up on the 'Net by now...

I wonder what happened to the video of the bomb going off?  I woulda expected it to have shown up on the 'Net by now...


It was on network news last night, I saw it.  It showed Wells begging them to do something about it, and it showed the bomb exploding and him lying dead, something I thought they weren't supposed to show. 

It was on network news last night, I saw it.  It showed Wells begging them to do something about it, and it showed the bomb exploding and him lying dead, something I thought they weren't supposed to show. 

I hope those two thugs rot in prison until they're too old to make trouble!
>:(

I'm not sure on this.  They said way back that Wells was developmentally delayed. 


That is not true at all.  From most reports I have heard, he was actually quite intelligent.  Among other things, he was an avid fan of crossword puzzles, and also wrote songs.  He simply seemed to be a man of little ambition.  "Career Slacker" is probably how I would classify him.

And when I worked at Domino's, I knew a guy just like him.  Almost 50, he has been delivering pizzas for over 25 years.  One of the reasons he likes it is that it lets him work when he wants to, and he can also talk on his CB and Ham radios while on deliveries.  This guy can talk your ear off about electronics, politics, and almost anything else you can think of.  He simply has no ambition, and as long as he has enough money to get by, he is happy.

That is not true at all.  From most reports I have heard, he was actually quite intelligent.  Among other things, he was an avid fan of crossword puzzles, and also wrote songs.  He simply seemed to be a man of little ambition.  "Career Slacker" is probably how I would classify him.

And when I worked at Domino's, I knew a guy just like him.  Almost 50, he has been delivering pizzas for over 25 years.  One of the reasons he likes it is that it lets him work when he wants to, and he can also talk on his CB and Ham radios while on deliveries.  This guy can talk your ear off about electronics, politics, and almost anything else you can think of.  He simply has no ambition, and as long as he has enough money to get by, he is happy.


And could well have been autistic.  Highly intelligent, but abysmal at negotiating the real world.  For 25 years he delivered pizza, despite his intelligence.  I meet people like him everyday at the local Association of Retarded Citizens.  My brother can talk your ear off about a lot of things, drive a car, go on trips by himself, looks quite "normal" yet he worked as a spray painter in a monitored environment and has a naivete that is stunning, more like a 9 year old.  This is one of the areas, you, and many people have very little understanding. 

Here is a scenario.  A highly intelligent man works as a pizza delivery guy for 25 years, never a problem.  One day he meets a couple of people and decides to let them strap a bomb on him, that he himself cannot remove, go to a bank to rob it, knowing that if he isn't back in a certain amount of time for whatever reason, it will explode and kill him. Oh, yeah.  There is a real genius for you. 

An alternate scenario.  A couple of people call the pizza delivery service, a guy comes out and they strap a bomb on him and make sure he can't take it off himself. They tell him that if he isn't back in a certain amount of time with money from the bank they will explode the bomb and kill him(hey, that kinda sounds exactly like what happened.)

I think I know which side Sherlock would come down on this one.

I am not aware of very many autistic people that are avid crossword puzzle players.

However, I know quite a few "career slackers".  In many ways, I am one.  Single for over 25 years, I live a fairly simple life.  I do not go out to clubs, I do not "party", I spend most of my evenings quietly at home watching old movies.  I do not even date, having lost the desire to get back into that "rat race" anymore.

That does not make me autistic, nor does it make me stupid.  And yes, I could make a lot more money then I am now, but I have absolutely no desire to ever move back to the "big city", I am perfectly happy working in a small town, and making low wages.  At least I will not die of a heart attack by the time I am 65, or have an ulcer like all to many techs I knew.

I am not aware of very many autistic people that are avid crossword puzzle players.



Then you are not aware of what autism is.

Many "high functioning" autistic persons are actually quite brilliant, they can have astounding IQs, memory, and/or technical knowledge(think Rainman)but cannot function socially, and are unable to hold more than what would be menial jobs.  They jobs they do hold they tend to be extremely dependable, as Brian Wells is purported to have been.  They depend on routine.  There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that there is an autistic person who does crosswords everyday, avidly, and correctly(they can sometimes be OCD).

I would suggest that many people who care for a high functioning autistic person(two in my family) are questioning if this is the case in this instance.

Bets are now closed.

Wired, in 2010, probably had the best explanation of the Collar Bomber crime.