Police ID lone Nashville bomber
Antioch man was killed in the blast
Federal authorities say a 63-yearold Antioch man was responsible for a Christmas morning bombing that left the suspect dead and captured the nation’s attention over the holiday weekend as officials worked to determine who parked an RV downtown to detonate.
What motivated him is still unknown.
Hundreds of federal, state and local law enforcement officers worked to solve the case, and just 60 hours after the explosion, agents Sunday evening named Anthony Quinn Warner as the bomber. He died in the blast.
“He was present when the bomb went off and he perished in the bombing,” said Don Cochran, U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee.
Through DNA evidence, authorities confirmed Warner’s remains were found at the scene, Cochran said.
“I cannot truly describe all the hard work that has gone into this investigation since Friday’s explosion," Metro Nashville Police Chief John Drake said during Sunday’s announcement. "Nashville is considered safe."
Police earlier in the day released chilling details about the moments before the bomb detonated on Second Street about 6:30 a.m. on Friday, adding to an eerie portrait of a man in an RV who blared evacuation warnings before the explosion demolished a city block.
While acquaintances on Sunday described Tony Warner as a self-employed computer guru — and a homebody who tended to his pets and kept
to himself — police officers on the scene before the bomb exploded recalled a strange recording emanating from the RV.
In between a digitized female voice giving warnings to evacuate the area, there was music, the officers said.
"Downtown," a wistful 1964 song by Petula Clark, echoed down Second Avenue just before the blast.
“When you're alone and life is making you lonely you can always go downtown,” blared Clark's voice through the speakers. “When you've got worries, all the noise and the hurry seems to help, I know.”
Despite massive destruction to 41 buildings, no one else was killed in the explosion. Officers helped evacuate nearby residents from several apartments.
The RV was parked outside of an AT&T facility, though authorities have not said whether they believe the telecommunications company may have been a target.
The blast caused extensive damage to phone and internet coverage throughout the region, causing communication blackouts for 911 centers in surrounding counties, leaving customers throughout the state without service and exposing vulnerabilities in infrastructure.
Gov. Bill Lee on Saturday requested federal aid in effort to help businesses affected by the explosion. An evening curfew remained in place until Sunday, though access into downtown is still restricted.
Authorities are expected to continue their investigation downtown in the coming days. The type of explosives used in the blast remain unknown. Warner wasn't on the radar of law enforcement before Friday's explosion, they said, and officials have declined to deem the bombing an act of terrorism.
Doug Korneski, an FBI Special Agent in Charge, said Sunday investigators had “reviewed hours of security video surrounding the recreational vehicle” and determined no other suspects were involved in the bombing.
Tips from the public helped authorities initially identify Warner as a suspect. The Tennessee Highway Patrol discovered a vehicle part from the RV with a Vehicle Identification Number linking it to Warner.
Korenski requested people who knew Warner to contact police and share information while authorities investigate "any and all motives."
“None of those answers will ever be enough for those who have been affected by this event,” Korenski said.
Who was Tony Warner?
Warner grew up in Antioch and attended Antioch High School, graduating in the mid-1970s before settling down in the same community and working various IT jobs.
But in just the past month, Warner appeared to put his affairs in order. He transferred ownership of the home where he had lived for decades. He informed a regular business client he would no longer be working.
Property records show on the day before Thanksgiving, Warner transferred the title of his longtime Bakertown Road home to a Los Angeles woman. The transaction, a quitclaim deed that did not require the woman's signature, was made for $0.
Steve Fridrich, who owns Fridrich & Clark Realty, said Warner was hired four or five years ago as a contractor to provide IT services for the business. Warner repaired the company's computers and set up machines for new employees.
“In December he sent us an email saying he'd no longer be working for us,” Fridrich said.
Warner didn't give a reason.