what became of the collarbomb pizza delivery case?

Factual Questions
21

[QUOTE=Lissa]
Dunno if it’s true, but the brother’s website makes this claim:

If it’s true, that just horrifies me. I know the officers had to fear for their saftey, but goddam, what an awful way to die.

Assuming all of this is true, this last part throws me for a loop. It sounds as though he was, uh, * intact *after the bomb exploded, at least enough to be alive, and they were forced to remove his head to take off the bomb. Why would the family be given only “parts” to inter?
[/QUOTE]

Well, if they cut his head off, then when the body was returned to the family it would be in parts, and probably wrapped in cloth. Don’t know why it woudld be in a “group” of parts, though. Maybe the authorities insisted on keeping tissue for purposes of evidence?

22

A story in the Pittsburgh paper has more details, some of which contradict the claims in the AP and ABC News stories that the case has been solved and that indictments are imminent.

23

[QUOTE=Jodi]
Well, if they cut his head off, then when the body was returned to the family it would be in parts, and probably wrapped in cloth. Don’t know why it woudld be in a “group” of parts, though. Maybe the authorities insisted on keeping tissue for purposes of evidence?
[/QUOTE]

I apologize that I wasn’t being clear. The impression that I got from the family’s website was that they were given a small portion of his remains loosely bundled into a cloth rather than (as I would expect) a torso and a head in a body bag. It could be, though, that I just misunderstood what they were trying to say.

24

The family’s site has been updated quite a bit. Here is the internet archive of the site, the April 2005 page says what Lissa said it did.

ETA: On the current incarnation it’s under “official desecration”, which as you look at the killer’s notes will show as the list scrolls. :smack:

25

[QUOTE=Ender_Will]
Ordering a pizza tonight, I was reminded of this case from a few years ago.
[/QUOTE]

Yes, we had almost expunged that bit of extreme wierdness from the national public psyche, but somebody dredged that up for a second helping. But overall I smell litigation, it may be the family lawyer’d up. It may be a fevered bank-heist “gone wrong”, as the media is wont to say.

26

You know the one; where the pizza delivery guy wound up with a bomb around his neck and robbed a bank. He later died when the bomb exploded.

Last February, I heard the case was solved and details would be forth coming in a month.

Well? It’s been way past a month.

What’s the latest info on the case?

27

Supposedly the case has been solved, but details have not been released yet. Here’s the wiki site. And an article.

28

This article from last week says that “A federal grand jury has been meeting on the Wells case at the U.S. District Courthouse in Erie. No one has been indicted.”

Details of the grand jury proceedings are secret, but one individual seems to have identified herself as the target of an indictment, based on her public professions of innocence in a letter to the Erie News-Times.

This article from the same paper details what the FBI believes happened. There are three suspects in the case: two are in prison (Diehl-Armstrong and Ken Barnes) and the other one has died (Rothstein). The motive remains unclear, although the Erie TImes-News does report this:

29

Here’s the latest news.

30

Here’s more: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/07/11/collar.bomb.charges/index.html

31

Here’s the latest: http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/07/11/collar.bomb.charges/index.html

32

side question- was a reason ever given for why the cops didn’t at least put a bullet proof vest on the guy between his chest and the bomb?

33

[QUOTE=Wee Bairn]
side question- was a reason ever given for why the cops didn’t at least put a bullet proof vest on the guy between his chest and the bomb?
[/QUOTE]

The police were waiting for the bomb squad. They would not have approached the bomb, even with the guy attached to it, nor would they have done anything to jostle the device in any way, including trying to cushion it or put something underneath it.

34

Have the police ever responded to why it took a half hour to call the bomb squad?

35

Merged the zombie thread with the newer one.

Gfactor, General Questions Moderator

36

They were confused by the pizza delivery guarantee and thought they could get the bomb squad services at a discount if they took more than 30 minutes to get there.

37

Here’s a link to the indictment.

38

Nothing I’ve read says why the cops think the pizza guy was involved- has the link with him and the perps been reported?

39

Plus, what’s the motive? I must be missing something here.

40

[QUOTE=bordelond]
Plus, what’s the motive? I must be missing something here.
[/QUOTE]

The latest CNN article seems to say that the motive was for the ringleader (the girl) to obtain money from the bank robbery that she could use to put a hit out on her dad.

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/07/11/collar.bomb.charges/index.html

ETA: But, like Wee Bairn, I don’t think we’ve seen any information on why the police think the pizza guy was involved. I’m sure they have something, but I doubt they’ve released it yet.