Sources: Suspect Admits Pipe-Bomb Attacks
May 8 -- The 21-year-old suspect in a string of mailbox pipe-bomb attacks has admitted responsibility, law enforcement sources said today.
In a tense cell-phone conversation during the high-speed car chase that led to his arrest Tuesday evening, Luke John Helder told of his alleged five-state spree, and did so again during interviews with police after his arrest, the sources said.
FBI sources said Helder admitted making 24 pipe bombs and used a map to show authorities where he planted some of them — 18 in five states. Six more devices were recovered from his car.
Helder was denied bail at a federal court hearing today in Reno, Nev., after a judge decided that he was a flight risk. He will be sent back to Iowa, where one of the devices exploded and injured an elderly woman, to face more charges. Helder is facing charges in at least three of the states where he allegedly planted the devices — charges that could carry life in prison.
Several Charges to Come
A total of six people were injured in Iowa and Illinois, and devices were also left in Nebraska, Texas and Colorado.
According to the complaint filed today in federal court in Iowa, a letter sent by Helder to his father contained the phrase "Mailboxes are exploding" — the same chilling words officials say were found on letters left with the bombs, which were planted in rural mailboxes.
"This was an incident of national concern which received a national response," U.S. Attorney Charles W. Larson of the Northern District of Iowa said in a statement Tuesday night. "The involvement of the public and hundreds of law enforcement agents led to the successful arrest this evening."
In a note recovered by investigators, Helder references President Bush, sources said. The note was considered non-threatening but was passed on to the Secret Service, which is checking to see if the suspect ever threatened the White House.
Helder, of Pine Island, Minn., was charged in Iowa with using an explosive to maliciously destroy property affecting interstate commerce, and with using a destructive device to commit a crime of violence. Charges have also been filed in Illinois and Nebraska. The Iowa charges alone carry penalties of up to life in prison and fines of $250,000.
Popular Reads
ABC News Live