Bombing suspect arrested
Fla. man with lengthy record accused of mailing explosives
A Florida man whose white van was festooned with angry slogans and images directed at the political left was arrested Friday in connection with the spate of suspicious, potentially explosive devices sent in recent days to prominent critics of President Donald Trump.
The mailings, more than a dozen sprinkled throughout the week and throughout the country, spread waves of fear among politicians, media figures and thousands of postal workers tasked with scouring the country’s mail in search of devices that authorities say still might not be fully accounted for.
“These are not hoax devices,” FBI Director Christopher Wray said, adding that more of the packages might still be in the mail.
The suspect, Cesar Sayoc, 56, was taken into custody by an FBI SWAT team near state Route 7 in Plantation, Fla., about 40 miles north of Miami. His van, covered with slogans and a picture of Trump that were partially concealed by a blue tarp, was followed live by television helicopters.
Sayoc has been charged with five federal crimes, including interstate transportation of an explosive and threatening a former president. He could face a
ARREST
sentence of up to 58 years in prison, Attorney General Jeff Sessions said in announcing the charges at a news conference.
“This is a law-and-order administration. We will not tolerate such lawlessness, especially not political violence,” Sessions said.
About the suspect
Wray said it was “too early to be discussing motivation.”
According to the criminal complaint, Sayoc posted statements on social media critical of President Barack Obama and George Soros, the financier and supporter of liberal causes. Hillary Clinton, Obama and Soros were among those to whom Sayoc allegedly sent explosives.
He said Sayoc had been initially identified using a fingerprint discovered on one of the envelopes mailed to Rep. Maxine Waters, D-calif. Investigators then linked two DNA samples taken from explosive devices sent to Obama and Waters to a sample taken from Sayoc in connection with an earlier arrest in Florida, Wray said.
The devices have so far failed to detonate, leading some to believe they may not have been intended to inflict harm. Wray contradicted that theory.
Sayoc, who has a prior arrest for making a threat with an explosive, is not a Florida native but lives in Aventura in northern Miami-dade County, according to the officials, who were not authorized to speak publicly on the matter.
Public records reveal an arrest record that includes 20 criminal charges, the latest related to a 2015 theft. He has also been charged with battery and possession and distribution of illegal drugs, and he filed for personal bankruptcy in 2012, according to records. He was arrested in 2002 on a charge of making a threat to discharge a destructive device.
Less than two hours after the arrest Friday, Trump celebrated it at an event with young African-american leaders at the White House.
“These terrorizing acts are despicable and have no place in our country,” he said, promising that the justice system would be tough on the perpetrator. “We will prosecute them — him, her, whoever it may be — to the fullest extent of the law.”
In his 2012 bankruptcy filing, Sayoc said he was unmarried, lived with his mother and owned no furniture; his vehicle was a 2001 Chevy Tahoe with 285,000 miles on it.
The law office for the attorney who represented Sayoc in the bankruptcy case, Christian Olson, declined to comment.
In December 2013, Sayoc was charged with felony grand theft and battery over a Nov. 28, 2013, incident. He pleaded no contest in May 2014 and was placed on a year’s probation. He violated the terms of his probation in January 2015 and was rearrested, court records show. He pleaded no contest in 2015 to petty theft and was placed on another year of probation.
Earlier Friday, the FBI found three more packages with suspicious devices — sent to Sens. Kamala Harris, D-calif., and Cory Booker, D-N.J., and former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper.
The FBI confirmed on social media that a package was sent to Booker, saying it was recovered at a U.S. Postal Service facility in Florida and was similar in appearance to others directed toward prominent figures, including Obama, Clinton, former Vice President Joe Biden, former Attorney General Eric Holder, Soros, actor Robert De Niro and Waters.
Graham response
Many Trump critics and others have blamed the president, at least in part, for coarsening American politics and creating an angrier climate. Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., however, said on Twitter that the charge was unfair.
“I didn’t blame Bernie Sanders when a Bernie supporter shot Congressman Steve Scalise. And I’m not going to blame President @realdonaldtrump for this nut job,” Graham wrote.
Earlier in the week, law enforcement officials had said at least some of the packages were sent from southern Florida. They were marked with the return address of Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-fla., who has led the Democratic National Committee.
Schultz, speaking to reporters in southern Florida on Friday, called the perpetrator “sinister,” “evil” and “horrific.”
“I really don’t know,” she said, when asked why her return address was used. She said the moment pointed to the need for political comity.
“None of us should be treating our opponents like the enemy.”