First OKCPD Officer in Murrah Building Murdered, Throat Cut, Body Drug with Rope

Tulsa Talk Radio | Interview with Tonia Yeakey

[Texas Gal]

Thank you for this post.  I had never heard about Mr. Yeakey, and the story is very interesting.  Very terrible, but it is one of those things we all need to know about.  I did an search for a picture of Mr. Yeakey and it led me to  this website .   Mr. Yeakey's death does not sound like a suicide at all.  Why did the F.B.I. involve itself in the investigation of his death in the first place?  Doesn't a law enforcement agency have to have jurisdiction to investigate a death?

[Plummz]

Any response to those FOIAs?

[janetgreen]

BUMP for reading tomorrow.

[mancini]

All of the events surrounding Terry Yeakey's death are suspect, especially the FBI's insinuation into it. The man was murdered, plain and simple. He saw something at the bombing site (that the government didn't want him to see), videotaped it, and paid for it with his life. No tin-foil-hat aspects to this story.

[honway]

Why did the F.B.I. involve itself in the investigation of his death in the first place? Doesn't a law enforcement agency have to have jurisdiction to investigate a death?

It is my understanding that Yeakey's body was found on federal property near El Reno, this was the justification for over two dozen federal agents at the scene of a suicide.

[honway]

OKLAHOMA CITY -- On May 8, 1996, only three days before Sergeant Terrance Yeakey was to receive the Oklahoma Police Department's Medal of Valor, he "committed suicide." The 30 year-old cop was found in a field near El Reno, not far from where prison guard Joey Gladden "committed suicide

____________________________________________________

According to this piece by David Hoffman, it appears this federal land was selected by two suspicious suicides in less than a year. Gladden was a guard in the prison where McVeigh and Nichols were incarcerated.

[honway]

This letter is from an article by David Hoffman. The link for the source is in reply #23. I consider David Hoffman a credible source and I respect his work.

___________________________________________________________

Why would the Medal of Valor recipient make such a bizarre- sounding statement? In a letter he wrote to a bombing victim and friend, the officer tells the real reason for his reluctance to be honored as a hero:

Dear Ramona,

I hope that whatever you hear now and in the future will not change your opinions about myself or others with the Oklahoma City Police Department, although some of the things I am about to tell you about is [sic] very disturbing.

I don't know if you recall everything that happened that morning or not, so I am not sure if you know what I am referring to.

The man that you and I were talking about in the pictures I have, made the mistake of asking too many questions as to his role in the bombing, and was told to back off.

I was told by several officers he was a ATF agent who was overseeing the bombing plot and at the time the photos were taken he was calling in his report of what had just went down!

I think my days as a police officer are numbered because of the way my supervisors are acting and there is [sic] a lot of secrets floating around now about my mental state of mind. I think they are going to write me up because of my ex-wife and a VPO.

I told you about talking to Chaplain Poe, well the bastard wrote up in a report stating I should be relieved of my duties! I made the mistake of thinking that a person's conversation with a chaplain was private, which by the way might have cost me my job as a police officer! A friend at headquarters told me that Poe sent out letters to everyone in the department! That BITCH (Jo Ann Randall) I told you about is up to something and I think it has something to do with Poe. If she gets her way, they will tar and feather me!

I was told that Jack Poe has written up a report on every single officer that has been in to see him, including Gordon Martin and John Avery.

Knowing what I know now, and understanding fully just what went down that morning, makes me ashamed to wear a badge from Oklahoma City's Police Department. I took an oath to uphold the Law and to enforce the Law to the best of my ability. This is something I cannot honestly do and hold my head up proud any longer if I keep my silence as I am ordered to do.

There are several others out there who was [sic] what we saw and even some who played a role in what happened that day.

[Two Pages Missing]

My guess is the more time an officer has to think about the screw up the more he is going to question what happened... Can you imagine what would be coming down now if that had been our officers' who had let this happen? Because it was the feds that did this and not the locals, is the reason it's okay. You were right all along and I am truly sorry I doubted you and your motives about recording history. You should know that it is going to one-hell-of-a-fight.

Everyone was behind you until you started asking questions as I did, as to how so many federal agents arrived at the scene at the same time.

Luke Franey (a BATF agent who claimed he was in the building) was not in the building at the time of the blast, I know this for a fact, I saw him! I also saw full riot gear worn with rifles in hand, why? Don't make the mistake as I did and ask the wrong people.

I worry about you and your young family because of some of the statements that have been made towards me, a police officer! Whatever you do don't confront McPhearson with the bomb squad about what I told you. His actions and defensiveness towards the bombing would make any normal person think he was defending himself as if he drove the damn truck up to the building himself. I am not worried for myself, but for you and your group. I would not be afraid to say at this time that you and your family could be harmed if you get any closer to the truth. At this time I think for your well being it is best for you to distance yourself and others from those of us who have stirred up to many questions about the altering and falsifying of the federal investigation's reports.

I truly believe there are other officers like me out there who would not settle for anything but the truth, it is just a matter of finding them. The only true problem as I see it is, who do we turn to then?

It is vital that people like you, Edye Smith, and others keep asking questions and demanding answers for the actions of our federal government and law enforcement agencies that knew beforehand and participated in the cover-up.

The sad truth of the matter is that they have so many police officers convinced that by covering up the truth about the operation gone wrong, that they are actually doing our citizens a favor. What I want to know is how many other operations have they had that blew up in their faces? Makes you stop and take another look at Waco.

I would consider it to be an insult to my profession as a police officer and to the citizens of Oklahoma for ANY of the City, State or Federal agents that stood by and let this happen to be recognized as any thing other than their part in participation in letting this happen. For those who ran from the scene to change their attire to hide the fact that they were there, should be judged as cowards.

If our history books and records are ever truly corrected about that day it will show this and maybe even some lame excuse as to why it happened, but I truly don't believe it will from what I now know to be the truth.

Even if I tried to explain it to you the way it was explained to me, and the ridiculous reason for having [our] own police departments falsify reports to their fellow officers, to the citizens of the city and to our country, you would understand why I feel the way I do about all of this.

I believe that a lot of the problems the officers are having right now are because some of them know what really happened and can't deal with it, and others like myself made the mistake of trusting the one person we were supposed to be able to turn to (Chaplain Poe) only to be stabbed in the back.

I am sad to say that I believe my days as a police officer are numbered because of all of this....

[mancini]

Let's put a picture of this man on this thread. God rest his soul.

[honway]

GRAMMAR

dragged is the past tense of 'drag' - drug is a pharmaceutical

[Frank Grimes]

The whole OKC bombing is very close to my heart, as I lost an uncle in the building and my mother was about 2 blocks away(her windows were blown out). I was only in High School when it happened, but I remember feeling as if something were not right when they were able to arrest Mcveigh so quickly and were convinced from day one that he was the guy.

Jerry Bohnen is the father of one of my good buddies. I played basketball with his son John, and John is now at West Point. I had no idea that he was involved in keeping the Feds' secrets under wrap, and knowing the man, I believe the only way that this could be true would be if he feared for his life.

What a sick, sick thing for the FBI to have on it's hands. The truth will probably never totally come out, and if it did, I believe only a handful of people like you and me would give a rat's ass.

[honway]

Frank, you have my deepest sympathy for the loss of your uncle. At times it becomes too easy to lose focus on the impact of this event on individual lives and families while you are trying to fit the pieces of information together. Thank you for the reminder that the lives of real people were cut much too short and the lives of others were changed forever.

[honway]

Jerry Bohnen is the father of one of my good buddies. I played basketball with his son John, and John is now at West Point

I am certain your friend John earned and deserved his appointment to West Point, otherwise, he would not have been accepted to the Point.
An appointment usually requires a Congessional nomination, and quite frankly, had Bohnen publicly challenged the U.S. government's version of the events in OKC, it is very likely that his actions may have disqualified his son for the nomination/appointment. Considering the appointment is equivalent to a scholarship of about $250,000 and the fact that the entire OKC Police Department was prepared to ignore the murder of one of their own, how much are we to expect from one private citizen?

Tonia Yeakey went public with significantly more incriminating information than Bohnen had and her story, unfortunately, has made little difference because the public in general does not care. If Bohnen chose a well earned bright future for his son over exposing the truth to an audience who could care less, who could blame him?

[ThreeYearLurker]

Articles that purport a conspiracy without much evidence fall in the tin foil category. Usually these come from sources about as reliable as Debka. Especially when relating to Arkancides. Most of the so called "Arkancides" weren't and some people listed on the Arkancide list are still alive. Check out the Snopes Urban Legend site for details

I am sorry for Mrs. Yeakey's loss, I'm sure her husband was a fine man, however I know that denial can make people think of some strange things.

After reading many responses to this article, I can see how people may feel strongly. Some people think that McVeigh was part of a government consipracy, I do not. However, to have a balanced analysis of this case, please post material form a more reliable source to back up your claim, like an Oklahoma newspaper, that has done unbiased research, and has had access to the autopsy. Then I can retract my statement.

[Frank Grimes]

to an audience who could care less, who could blame him?

I think that is the key. People can shout to the high heavens about all of this stuff, but unless it is on one of the "major" networks or on the cover of Time, or has a TV movie done about it, John Q Public could care less. It is much more important, obviously, for us to care about how Al Qaeda prisoners are treated than if the FBI killed 168 of our own citizens.

[Frank Grimes]

Here's something to get you started.

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The Strange Death of Ron Miller

Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were in contact with the M.E.'s office during his autopsy.
by Constitution Staff In the middle of October of 1997, Norman businessman Ron Miller was scheduled to testify before a congressional committee. According to several sources, Miller was prepared to implicate President Clinton's Chief of Staff Thomas F. McLarty III in Oklahoma-related scandals. First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton was exposed to, at a minimum, severe embarrassment if Miller testified. (For more on this story, see the Spring 2001 issue of the Oklahoma Constitution, or consult our web site at www.oklahomaconstitution.com and read "Oklahoma Natural Gas Overcharges Tied to Clinton White House.")

Miller's sudden death on October 12, 1997, prevented his testimony against McLarty.

For several months, Miller was subjected to numerous threats over the phone, in person, and in other bizarre ways. He was specifically told to "back off." The 58-year-old Miller became ill Thursday, October 2. His condition worsened until he entered Norman Regional Hospital on October 4, suffering from "flu-like" symptoms. On October 8, alarmed at his rapidly deteriorating condition, business associate Larry Evans, a board member at Integris Baptist Hospital transferred Miller to Baptist Hospital in Oklahoma City at the family's request.

After his death, Baptist referred his case to the Oklahoma Medical Examiner's office. Despite extensive tests, the M.E.'s office declared Miller's death a "medical mystery." Some suggested Ricin poisoning as a possible cause, but the M.E.'s office specifically tested for that and found no Ricin antibodies. A hospital test for Legionnaire's Disease was also negative.

Others have proposed inhalational, or airborne Anthrax as the biological agent that killed Miller. Using medical records from Norman Regional Hospital, Integris Baptist Hospital and the autopsy report from the Medical Examiner's office, combined with material on inhalational anthrax obtained from the Center for Disease Control in Atlanta and other sources, the Oklahoma Constitution will examine this thesis.

Anthrax is a rare disease caused by spore-forming bacterium bacillus anthracis. Transmission through injured skin is more common than by inhalation. Inhalational anthrax symptoms follow deposition of spore-bearing particles into alveolar spaces of the human body. It is thought to occur most commonly from the inhalation of dust where animal hides or hairs are handled. The infection is expected to occur from one to six days after inhaling Bacillus anthracis spores, although some have suggested that an incubation time of up to forty days is possible.

Miller became ill Thursday, October 2, 1997, experiencing what he thought was a bad cold. His condition worsened into what he believed was the flu. He was experiencing high fever, persistent cough, memory loss, lethargy and chills. This is consistent with the early signs of airborne anthrax, but an accurate diagnosis at this stage, would require in the words of the literature, "a high degree of suspicion."

Norman medical personnel detected a right upper lobe pneumonia, and began him treating initially with timentin, a penicillin derivative. Doctors soon discontinued timentin in favor of more powerful antibiotics, azactam and kefzol. Neither of these antibiotics will cure a person of an anthrax infection. The drug of choice is penicillin in large doses (at least 1.2 million units daily, with erythromycin and doxycycline also considered efficacious by some authorities, to a lesser degree, if given early enough. Treatment with Penicillin G should continue for at least a week. Some experts believe inhaled anthrax can be fatal, despite antibiotic treatment even prior to symptoms.Cecil's Textbook of Medicine states that, "(T)he progressive course may be so rapid that anitmicrobial drugs may not save the patient's life."

Early in his hospital stay, Miller suffered from severe diarrhea, but doctors managed to bring that under control, and Miller even experienced general improvement over Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday.

By two o'clock Monday, October 6, Miller reported to the nurses that he "feels so much better," and appeared on his way to recovery. On Tuesday, Miller's temperature was normal, and his release from the hospital the next day likely. Then, on Wednesday, October 8, Miller's condition worsened dramatically, his temperature spiking to 105. The medical literature reports that, in many cases of inhalational anthrax, the patient often experiences a period of recovery, followed by rapid relapse, with increased difficulty in breathing, profuse sweating, cyanosis, shock and death in two to three days.

Norman Hospital then sent Miller to Integris Baptist, considered by many the finest hospital in Oklahoma. His condition worsened at Baptist. Doctors switched his antibiotics to rocephin and fortaz. Soon, fortaz was discontinued in favor of erythromycin. When a rash developed around the neck, upper chest, feet and ankles on October 10 (Friday) doctors added doxycycline to the regimen. There is some suggestion that Baptist doctors might have begun to consider something like anthrax by October 10, a Friday. Nurses reported that an unidentified "business partner" called and reported some travel in the last three to four months to Nebraska, Iowa, and California. The next comment was, "No specific exposure or activity that would suggest animal related illness." Then the records noted that a "coworker," also unidentified, "came by and reported Mr. Miller was in Iowa and Nebraska three to four months ago looking at horse ranches." Anthrax is usually associated with animal contact, with workers in animal hides occasional anthrax victims.

Then, Saturday, October 11, a "Doctor Frost" called a nurse. This mysterious "Doctor Frost" suggested that Miller was poisoned. No Doctor Frost is listed in the metropolitan Oklahoma City area and neither the hospital nor the family had ever heard of Doctor Frost. One consulting Norman doctor expressed some irritation that Miller had "great reticence in talking much about his personal life and one can only go ahead and deduce from the little hints about what is going on."

This cryptic comment suggests that Miller never told doctors at either Norman or Baptist that he feared deliberate infection with some deadly bacteria or other agent. He did, however, tell a business associate a few days before his sudden illness that after he testified before Congress, "Al Gore will never become president."

Specific symptoms suffered by Ron Miller (noted at either Norman or Baptist) that are consistent with inhalational anthrax include the following: acute tubular necrosis, fever, chills, hypotension, enlarged mediastinal lympodonopathy, diasphoresis, shock, non-productive cough, severe breathing problems, and confusion. The initial right upper lobe infection is also indicative of an inhaled infection, such as airborne anthrax.

Medical literature consulted by the Oklahoma Constitution noted that sputum culture and gram stain are unlikely to be diagnostic. After five days, Miller's sputum grew only normal upper respiratory flora. Norman medical personnel noted Moderate gram cocci in clusters and moderate gram cocci in chains (suggesting the possibility of a staph-related infection), but the gram stain at Baptist reported no organisms. Viral cultures at Baptist were also negative. If proper antibiotic therapy is used to combat inhalational anthrax, "death occurs even if sterility of the bloodstream is achieved with antibiotics."

When referred from Baptist to the Oklahoma Chief Medical Examiner's office, Miller's death was classified as a death with "possible threat to public health." and "under suspicious circumstances." Agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) were in contact with the M.E.'s office during his autopsy. The initial M.E. report was "pending investigation." This was eventually changed to "natural," as opposed to the other possibilities of homicide, suicide, or unknown. Chief M.E. Fred Jordan reclassified the manner of death as "unknown," when challenged by Michigan investigator Stephen Dresch. Ray Blakeney of the M.E.'s office spoke to the Oklahoma Constitution on July 6, 2001 and again on July 19. Blakeney was very insistent that Miller did not die of any form of anthrax, assuring us that "toxicology testing" was done for inhaled anthrax. He added that part of the problem was that Miller "lived for several days." Blakeney reiterated that it was not anthrax, "unless it had taken a course that did not allow us to detect that."

Blakeney said that there are a few deaths each year that the technology is not advanced enough for a cause of death to be determined. "This happened to be one of those, and unfortunately in this case, happened to be some political thing . . . that everybody assumed that he was murdered." As we prepared to go to press, Blakeney promised that he would check to ensure that Miller's tissue specimens are on an "indefinite hold" with the medical examiner's office.

In the initial report of the medical examiner's office, Dr. John T. Cooper, who performed the autopsy, said, "(E)xtensive microbiological studies were negative; this does not rule out the involvement of an infectious agent." Dr. Cooper is now in private business in California. When contacted on July 11, 2001, he told us, "I don't know the cause." In regard to inhalational anthrax, Dr. Cooper said, "It's possible, but again I just don't remember the details of this case." He said that he did not recall why they ruled out inhaled anthrax, but admitted it was "possible," even if no anthrax is found in the tissues. His opinion is that Miller's death was "natural," but whatever killed Miller was "an unknown, an undetermined." The Pathological Diagnosis by the M.E.'s office cited a "clinical history of acute febrile illness with temperature greater than 104 degrees, leukocytosis and progressive eosinophilia (white blood cell count greater than 20,000 with pronounced left shift and eosinophils as high as 9%); diffuse alveolar damage of lungs with eosinophilia and clinical history of reactive airway disease; acute tubulointerstitial nephropathy, (a) clinical renal failure with creatinine as high as 5.1 and BUN/Creatinine ratios approximately 10, (b) renal tubal degeneration with marked cytoplasmic vacuolation, (c) focal interstitial inflammatory infiltrate with prominent eosinophilia; hepatic necrosis, centrilobular, with sparing of the immediate periportal parenchyma and moderate portal tract inflammation and superficial gastric candidiasis." The examiner summarized that "(T)he ultimate cause of death is believed to be either a rare infectious disease or a rare form of hypersensitivity to a biological agent. Unfortunately, the current state of medical knowledge does not permit us to solve this medical mystery."

The office of the District Attorney in Cleveland County considers Miller's death an open investigation. While the above consistencies of Miller's illness and inhalational anthrax are striking, we urge readers with other theories to contact the Oklahoma Constitution, or investigator Stephen Dresch at sdresch@forensic-intelligence.org.

[Free Vulcan]

bttt

[ThreeYearLurker]

Doesn't count.

[Frank Grimes]

mmkay...

[honway]

and has had access to the autopsy

No autopsy was performed on the body of Terrance Yeakey

[honway]

Friend: Guilt May Have Led to Officer's Death

05/11/1996
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- A reluctant hero of the Oklahoma City bombing who took his own life was wracked with guilt because an injury kept him from rescuing more victims, his closest friend said Friday. "The federal building claimed 169 lives," a tearful Officer Jim Ramsey said. "It just got another one."

Sgt. Terrance Yeakey, 30, was found Wednesday in a field near his hometown of El Reno. He had apparently tried to slit his wrists, then shot himself to death, just three days before he was to have received the department's Medal of Valor. Ramsey and Yeakey were among the first Oklahoma City police officers to reach the scene of the April 19, 1995, bombing that killed 168 people at the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building. Yeakey rescued at least four people before he fell through two floors of the wrecked building and injured his back.

Yeakey did not leave a suicide note, said Capt. Bill Citty, the department's spokesman. That left friends and co-workers to speculate that he was driven by guilt over the bombing rescue and his despondence over a troubled family life. "He had a lot of guilt because he got hurt," Ramsey said. Ramsey, who is to receive the city's Medal of Honor Saturday for the bombing rescue, choked back tears as he clutched a thick pile of letters from children praising Yeakey.

Yeakey had taught in the department's D.A.R.E. program, which tries to keep kids away from drugs, since August. "I have to bury one of my very dear friends and four hours later I have to accept the highest honor that's ever been given in the police department," said Ramsey, 27. "I just want him back. I'm going to have to figure out how to function."

Repeatedly hailed as a hero of the bombing's immediate aftermath, Yeakey shied away from the attention, said his supervisor, Lt. Joe Ann Randall. "He didn't like it. There are some people that like to be heroes and some that don't," she said. "He was not one that wanted that." From the Tulsa World