Oklahoma City terrorism report released

After six years in the making, the Oklahoma City Bombing Investigation Committee, headed up by former Oklahoma state representative Charles Key, has announced the long-awaited release of its final report, which differs sharply and dramatically from the official conclusions of the federal government.

The lengthy report, "Final Report on the Bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Building April 19, 1995," was written, said Key, to help Americans finally "get to the truth" about what really happened April 19, 1995 – the day the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was destroyed in Oklahoma City, Okla.

Timothy McVeigh, who was executed June 11 by the federal government in Terre Haute, Ind., for his role in the bombing, and accomplice Terry Nichols, who received a life sentence for his role in 1997, were not alone in planning and carrying out the bombing, the exhaustive report concludes.

Major points outlined in the committee's report include:

Evidence suggesting the federal government had prior knowledge that the bombing was going to occur, and where;
Evidence others besides McVeigh and Nichols had a hand in planning the attack, securing the materials for the explosives, and carrying the bombing out;
Materials detailing the government's early assertion that other unexploded bombs were found by authorities immediately after the first bomb went off;
Failures by federal law and court officials before, during and after the bombing.

"The purpose of our report is to document the truth," Key told WorldNetDaily. "We, as so many others do, believe that facts regarding other perpetrators, prior knowledge, and the number of explosive devices used to damage the Murrah Building have been concealed."

Key, who said McVeigh was not exonerated in the report, noted that when he began his investigation he hoped to accomplish three main tasks: empanel an Oklahoma grand jury to look into the bombing; lobby Congress to hold open hearings on the bombing and the government's handling of the case afterwards; and finally, produce a comprehensive report about his findings.

"Most of that was accomplished," Key said, noting that several congressmen, on his six trips to Washington, D.C., had urged him to put his findings in a final report.

In a separate development, Key said he is still trying to arrange a meeting with Attorney General John Ashcroft to discuss "improprieties" in the case that he uncovered while the OKC committee's investigation was still under way.

Key sent Ashcroft a letter June 1 – fully 10 days before McVeigh was executed – to request a meeting with the attorney general, but was rebuffed. The former state lawmaker said he has since sent two more letters, the most recent one in mid-July, requesting a meeting, but so far to no avail.

Because of the Justice Department's inaction, Key said he may try a different tactic.

"We are looking at taking a group -- victims, witnesses, surviving family members -- to D.C. for a press conference and to meet with congressmen and senators and House judiciary staff investigators that I have been in contact with," he told WND.

During the weeks preceding McVeigh's June execution, WorldNetDaily carried several stories profiling Key and some of the major findings of his committee.

The Oklahoma City Bombing Investigation Committee's comprehensive "Final Report on the Bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Building April 18, 1995" is 576 pages, including 50 color pages, and is available at WorldNetDaily's online store.