Shutterstock
Jerry Drake Varnell, an Oklahoma man, was arrested after he attempted to detonate a vehicle bomb parked outside an Oklahoma City bank.
Varnell, of Sayre, Oklahoma was arrested on Saturday, August 12 in Oklahoma City after he attempted to detonate a bomb outside a downtown bank in OKC. According to court documents, Varnell attempted to detonate what he believed was a van loaded with explosives parked in an alley next to BancFirst around 1 AM on Saturday.
The FBI first became aware of Varnell’s plot after an FBI agent posed as a person who could assist him in the plan. Varnell initially claimed he wanted to blow up the Federal Reserve Building in Washington D.C. with a device similar to the one used in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. Varnell said his reason for wanting to bomb the government buildings was because he was “upset with the government”
Furthermore, the Department of Justice reports Varnell continued to advance his plans to build a device, as well as preparing a statement to be posted to social media following the explosion. He then helped load the device into a van that he believed was stolen and drove to BancFirst. Varnell then allegedly dialed a number on his cell phone that he believed would trigger the explosion. The FBI also reports that that monitored Varnell closely during the month’long plot and that the device he loaded into the vehicle was inert.
According to the complaint, over the course of a months-long undercover investigation by the FBI, Varnell made repeated statements about the extent of his hatred of the federal government.
In one conversation he said he believed in the “Three Percenter” ideology — a form of anti-government activism that pledges resistance against the United States government on the belief it has infringed on the Constitution, according to court papers. Those who subscribe to the ideology incorrectly believe that only 3 percent of the colonial population participated in the American Revolution, and they see themselves as their heirs.
According to the complaint, Varnell expressed a desire to blow up buildings, but in a way that would minimize deaths or casualties, possibly by detonating the device at night when offices would be mostly empty. Authorities said Varnell attempted to detonate the fake bomb at 6:30 p.m. Friday. He was taken into custody shortly after midnight, according to the complaint.
Varnell, who was charged with attempting to use explosives to destroy a building in interstate commerce, is expected to appear in court today. The FBI is expected to announce his arrest later Monday.
