Two Oregon Police Officers Killed In Bomb Blast; Suspect Arrested

[Captain Crunch]

The Chief of Police in Woodburn, OR was also severely injured in the blast. Sad story. Prayers to the families.

Arrest made in Woodburn bank bombing - Breaking News From Oregon & Portland - OregonLive.com

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[joelg]

It will be interesting to determine the motive(s) and the individual involved. It is a very sad day for the families, especially this close to Christmas. My prayers will be for the downed officers and their families this day. I will pray that the SOB who set the bomb gets more than he expects - for all eternity!

[dukalmighty]

I still don't know why they picked up a suspected bomb and carried it into the bank,It goes against all the training I've ever had from the military and civilian LEO training.That aside in todays world as much as we hate all the guvment surveillance etc. there are lots of crimes being solved because of video surveillance either guvment or private

[JOHNSMITH]

I still don't know why they picked up a suspected bomb and carried it into the bank,It goes against all the training I've ever had from the military and civilian LEO training.That aside in todays world as much as we hate all the guvment surveillance etc. there are lots of crimes being solved because of video surveillance either guvment or private

Not sure either, but it sounds like the responding individuals may have felt the device was about to detonate immediately, and with no time to do anything else, they decided to try to move it into the bank to try to contain the blast as much as possible. That's my "theory," anyway.

[rstickle]

I still don't know why they picked up a suspected bomb and carried it into the bank,It goes against all the training I've ever had

It seems the only person that can really answer that was killed in the blast.

[BikerRN]

Rest in Peace

[Sig 210]

I still don't know why they picked up a suspected bomb and carried it into the bank,It goes against all the training I've ever had from the military and civilian LEO training.

That is the nuttiest thing I ever heard of in my 40+ years in the EOD/UXO field. There will be big lawsuits over one.

[retsupt99]

The story..


Salem man arrested on aggravated murder counts in Woodburn bank bombing
by The Oregonian
Monday December 15, 2008, 1:04 PM


The Associated Press
Officers work at the West Coast Bank in Woodburn, where a bomb blast killed a police officer and a state bomb disposal technician.
A 32-year-old North Salem man was arrested Sunday night on accusations of aggravated murder in the Friday bombing at a Woodburn bank that killed two law enforcement officers and critically wounded the Woodburn police chief.

The Marion County sheriff's office said this afternoon that Joshua Abraham Turnidge was arrested on accusations of manufacture of a destructive device, possession of a destructive device, assault in the first degree, assault in the second degree, conspiracy to commit aggravated murder, two counts of attempted aggravated murder and six counts of aggravated murder.


Joshua Abraham Turnidge
An arraignment is scheduled for Tuesday morning in Marion County court.

The Friday bombing killed Oregon State Police trooper William Hakim and Woodburn Police Capt. Tom Tennant, both 51. Wounded and in critical condition at OHSU Hospital is Woodburn Police Chief Scott Russell, 46.

Officials said the arrest was not the direct result of a tip from the public, but investigators want people with any information about the case to call the new tip line at 1-888-780-5678. The offer of a $35,000 reward for information leading to the conviction of the person or persons responsible for this crime remains open.

Police were called to the bank Friday afternoon when a suspicious device was found outside the branch and subsequently exploded. A federal and state investigative task force announced the arrest of an unnamed suspect Sunday.

The bombing took place at a West Coast Bank branch in Woodburn. Earlier today, West Coast Bank opened benefit accounts for the police victims killed and injured in the bombing at the company's Woodburn West branch.

"West Coast Bank extends its sincere sympathy and gratitude to the Woodburn Police Department and the Oregon State Bomb Squad who were working to protect our employees and property," said Regional President Ken Jundt. "It's our hope the special accounts will also help the victims' families during this traumatic time."

In addition, a bank employee who police have not identified for her safety, suffered minor injuries in the explosion.

"One of our main concerns right now is to help our employees get through this tragedy," Jundt said. "This has been a terrifying and traumatic time for our employees and their families."

Although the Woodburn West branch is closed indefinitely for repairs, customers may continue to do business at the Woodburn East branch, 1755 Mount Hood Avenue, Suite 120.

Authorities arrested Turnidge in the Salem area Sunday evening, but did not release his name
"to protect the integrity of the investigation and the safety of officers continuing to investigate this crime," a news release from the Marion County Sheriff's Office said.

"The arrest was the result of an intensive round-the-clock investigation by an interagency task force comprised of federal, state, county, and city public safety agencies," Marion County Sheriff Russ Isham said. "I'm really proud of those who tirelessly worked to get us to this point and am humbled by the community's support. We know there is still a lot of hard work ahead of us, but this development will help bring relief to the local community and the officers' families."


Marion County Sheriff's Office
Police said today that Turnidge is the man in the surveillance photos released Saturday.
Earlier Sunday, the police released photographs of a man they sought in connection with the Woodburn bank bombing that killed two police explosives experts and critically injured the town's police chief.

Blurry images, which were taken by surveillance cameras at a Wal-Mart in an undisclosed city, showed a man with a beard and receding dark hair, wearing jeans, a checked shirt and a heavy dark jacket.

The photographs were the first publicly disclosed break in a case that staggered Oregon law enforcement officials and frightened the public.

Bombings are rare in Oregon, to the point that bomb threats phoned to schools or other institutions are considered an annoyance rather than a serious event.

The deadly explosion culminated a series of events that police have not fully explained. The incident began about 10:30 a.m. Friday when a Wells Fargo bank adjacent to West Coast Bank received a telephoned bomb threat.

Wells Fargo was evacuated, and police found a suspicious object that they eventually determined was not dangerous. Investigators have declined to describe the object or provide details on how that determination was made.

The investigation later led officers to the West Coast Bank branch next door, where an employee found a second suspicious object under a bush. That bank was evacuated about 5 p.m. Police X-rayed the device and moved it into the bank, where it detonated at 5:24 p.m. Investigators have not disclosed why the device was moved or the circumstances of its handling.

Fortunately, Oregon has the death penalty...who has the alcohol swab?

[skycop]

Small world on this one. The bomb tech in my field office and the bomb tech in this case go back to the Navy days. I was told that there were a lot of foolish mistakes involved in the handling of the device. For one, the x-ray film was old and they could not get a good pic of the inside of the device.

There was also another false call at a local bank which led to the tech in this case thinking that the device was a fake. Complacency played a bug part in these unfortunate deaths. I am not pointing fingers here, but there is a lot to be learned from this case.