BUMP
Neverending story.
bump for publicity
Good post. I think there's a ping list somewhere for folks following this story. Not sure who to ping, though.
Same surnames so Thomas' brother is Joe III. Thomas father should be Joe II. BUT...
Thomas Hinrichs was arrested Nov. 15 in Colorado Springs after his father, Thomas Hinrichs Sr
It's not? What the hell?
Knee pads? Flashlight? And the significance of these are?
Sounds like the whole family is severely depressed, suicidal, bipolar, etc..
5.56mm
OK, I think it's safe to say, regardless of legalities, that this family is seriously screwed up.
Khrushchev?
Hmm, some things are wrong in this article. First of all, it's Thomas Carlyle Hinrichs and the father's name is not Thomas, it's Joel Henry Hinrichs Jr., called Joe by most.
I don't see anything in the Hinrichs family history I put together about anyone named Thomas Hinrichs Sr.
JoelIII, the bomber, has four older siblings - Angela, Berkeley, Christopher and Thomas. Age and birthdate are right for the Thomas in the story, but I have no idea who the Thomas Sr. could be who reportedly turned him in.
I have more, but will stop there for now.
I very much doubt he had a full auto/select fire rifle. But even cops don't know the proper nomenclature for a semi-auto carbine. Nor does Colorado have a state definition of "assault weapon".
I know of a few FReepers looking over their shoulder right about now. Shed those kneepads folks. Blackbird.
DOMESTIC TERRORISM ALERT. Please let me know by freepmail if you want to be put on or taken off this list. Thanks.
Ping
http://www.gazette.com/display.php?id=1326860&secid=1
November 22, 2006
Brother of University of Oklahoma bomber held for alleged threat
By DEEDEE CORRELL THE GAZETTE
A Colorado Springs man whose brother blew himself up outside the University of Oklahoma football stadium last year has been arrested for allegedly attacking his father and threatening to kill an FBI agent.
Thomas Carlisle Hinrichs, a 25-year-old Pikes Peak Community College student, believes federal officers have harassed him since the Oct. 1, 2005, suicide of his brother, Joel, according to court documents.
He allegedly considered waiting at the FBI office to ambush an agent and also thought about killing his father and high school principal.
Hinrichs was arrested Nov. 15 at Pikes Peak Community College’s Rampart Range
campus with a Romanian-made assault rifle, bulletproof vest, military helmet, hunting knife and ammunition in the trunk of his car, according to Colorado Springs police.
The arrest came after his father, Joel Henry Hinrichs Jr., told police Thomas had assaulted him and that he feared his son, whose mental health had deteriorated in the last year, would kill him.
“He believed his son was ‘going to blow,’” according to an arrest affidavit.
Hinrichs is being held at the El Paso County Criminal Justice Center in lieu of a $25,000 bond.
One year ago, Thomas’ younger brother, Joel “Joe” Henry Hinrichs III, detonated a bomb around his neck as he sat outside the packed football stadium where Oklahoma was playing Kansas State.
There was speculation that he was trying to set off the bomb in the stadium in a terrorist attack, but FBI investigators found no evidence of any ties to terrorist groups.
His family — which moved to Colorado Springs from Illinois about seven years ago — said Joel was severely depressed and lonely, as well as fascinated with ammunition and bombs.
“I was surprised a bit by the details, but on the whole I was not surprised,” Thomas Hinrichs told The Gazette in 2005. “He’d always been fascinated with artillery.
“He had real demons that were eating at him, and I told him some things I thought he needed to do, but he had such intense pride it didn’t register to him.”
The day after his brother’s suicide, FBI agents began investigating Thomas in Colorado Springs but closed the case six months later when they concluded Hinrichs had not made any specific threats.
However, an agent continued to monitor Hinrichs’ behavior on a monthly basis “to ensure that he was not a danger to himself or others,” according to the affidavit.
In July, Hinrichs left a phone message for an FBI agent, expressing his anger with the U.S. government and school system, which he blamed for his brother’s suicide, according to the affidavit.
He later told police he believed his brother killed himself “because of the abuse he endured while in high school,” according to court documents.
Joel Hinrichs graduated from Wasson High School in 2002. It wasn’t clear whether Thomas also attended Wasson; school offices were closed Wednesday, and records were not available, Colorado Springs School District 11 spokeswoman Elaine Naleski said.
Naleski said she didn’t know anything about alleged abuse, but Joel Hinrichs was known as a good student. School officials will look into the matter further, she said.
In October, Hinrichs allegedly left another message with the FBI, saying, “I will ... bury you, do you understand, I will bury you.”
On Oct. 31, he had an argument with his father, who said he confronted Thomas about his feelings that the world was out to get him. His son allegedly pushed him backwards in his chair, knocking him onto the floor. “This is what I do to people who lie,” he yelled, according to court documents.
The elder Hinrichs told police his son knows right from wrong but has mental health problems.
After receiving the father’s report, Colorado Springs police arrested Thomas at Pikes Peak, where he has been a student off and on for the past year.
He told police he was carrying a rifle because federal agents had harassed him and threatened his life. Although he denied planning to use the rifle against “any specific person,” he also said he was carrying the weapon because of an FBI agent named “Todd.” The affidavit did not give Todd’s last name because Hinrichs does not know it, said Jeff Dorschner, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Denver.
“He stated that Todd should be hung from a tree and that he dreamed of seeing Todd hang from a tree,” according to the affidavit, which also read that Hinrichs daydreamed about lying in wait at the FBI office and shooting Todd when he arrived at work.
Hinrichs also considered killing his high school principal and his father, according to the affidavit.
Since high school, his parents required him and his brother to visit mental health professionals, who “stripped me of my right to defend myself and interact with other students.” He said he no longer is an American citizen and asked to be deported to China, according to police.
If convicted of the federal charge, he faces 10 years in prison.
It’s not clear whether Hinrichs will face charges in connection with his comments about killing his father and principal. “It’s part of the ongoing investigation,” Dorschner said.
CONTACT THE WRITER: 636-0285 or deedee.correll@gazette.com
bttt
I just wonder how long it will take for this story to be swept away into oblivion.