Okla. museum eyes witness interview
the lives lost in the assault.
KEY TESTIMONY
Based in part on Fortier’s testimony, McVeigh was convicted in 1997 and executed in 2001.
Fortier, who also testified against convicted bombing conspirator Terry Nichols, served more than 10 years of a 12-year sentence for failing to inform authorities about the plot.
He was released in 2006, and his whereabouts have remained shrouded in secrecy.
The search for Fortier is part of the museum’s effort to interview major figures to provide a fuller account of the attack, Watkins said. The attack opened the nation’s eyes to a simmering threat from within, altered the landscape of victims’ rights in the U.S. and began transforming the government’s anti-terrorism strategy.
Watkins said Fortier’s cooperation could be “incredibly relevant” to the museum’s attempt to educate visitors about the tragic risks associated with remaining silent in the face of dangerous risks.
“If he called tomorrow, we’d go get the story,” Watkins said.
The Marshals Service hasn’t confirmed Fortier is part of the program, which has provided protection for 8,500 government witnesses and 9,900 family members since it began in 1971. The agency declined to discuss any contact with museum representatives.
An official with knowledge of the matter but not authorized to speak publicly about it said Fortier has been in the government’s protective custody.
Watkins said there have been at least “a couple” of attempts to contact the witness in the past two years.
Tulsa attorney Michael McGuire, who represented Fortier during the bombing investigation, declined to elaborate on his client’s whereabouts or his association with the government program.
He said his client had no interest in speaking publicly about his involvement in the 1995 attack.
“He doesn’t want to be interviewed,” McGuire said.
TRIAL WITNESS
In his testimony during McVeigh’s 1997 trial, Fortier said his former Army buddy took him to the site of the Oklahoma federal building four months before the attack and identified it as the target of the bomb plot.
“He made the comment that if he (McVeigh) had to, he was going to drive the truck down the stairs and crash it through the front door,” Fortier told the jury. The witness also recalled details about the building, including its nine-story facade of black glass.
Fortier testified that during the ride, McVeigh asked whether a large truck would fit in the driveup space at the front of the building, where the 4,800-pound explosive was detonated.
“I said you could probably fit three trucks there,” Fortier testified.
Fortier’s wife, Lori, who was granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for her testimony, told the McVeigh jury that at least three times in the year before the attack, McVeigh outlined details of his plan. She testified McVeigh arranged soup cans on the kitchen floor of the couple’s trailer home in Kingman, Ariz., to illustrate the attack.
“I could have stopped it,” she testified.
Attorney Michael McGuire says Michael Fortier has no interest in speaking about his involvement in the 1995 attack: “He doesn’t want to be interviewed.”