6-17-2002
(Editor's
Note: This story first appeared in the Lightning in
the Summer of 2002. With the latest developments in
the Jose Padilla terrorist case, we present it again
as a matter of curiousity.)
-Archived
in reverse oder -
EXCLUSIVE
Man Who Fingered
McVeigh Stays Mum On 'John Doe #2'
Witness Who
Rented Ryder Truck To Oklahoma Bomber Reserves
Comment On Photo Similarities Between 'Dirty Bomber'
Padilla And FBI Drawing Of 'John Doe #2'
RG Griffing,
Commentary
Copyright
2002 San Antonio Lightning
The
man who testified that he rented the
"death" truck to Timothy McVeigh has
confirmed that he has seen the photo and sketch
comparisons of "John Doe" and accused
"Dirty Bomber" Jose Padilla (See below),
but tells the Lightning that he will withhold comment
for now on advice of legal counsel.
Eldon
Elliott, was the owner of Elliott's Body Shop, a
Ryder truck outlet in Junction City, Kansas, the day
Tim McVeigh and another man rented the vehicle that
carried destruction to the Murrah Building in
Oklahoma City in 1995. He and two employees said
there was another man with McVeigh. Those witnesses
contributed to the 'John Doe' sketch below.
Authorities
have since played down even the existence of the man
pictured in the widely distributed FBI sketch. They
have attributed it to a soldier named Todd Bunting,
pictured here. Bunting was cleared of any
involvement.
The
Lightning reached Mr and Mrs Elliot at their home on
Saturday afternoon. In an exclusive interview they
said the Lightning's article (below) was the first
time they had been made aware of the striking
similarities between the "Doe" sketch and
Padilla photo.
They
viewed the items on our website during a brief
conversation with the Lightning, but after seeing the
pictures, the Elliots referred us to an attorney who
now represents them.
Much
controversy has swarmed around "John Doe
#2."
Particulary
disturbing to some, including Terry Nichol's defense
team, was the revelation by the FBI and Justice
Department that more than 3,000 documents had not
been turned over to them before trial. Some of those
documents apparently concerned the FBI's search for a
possible " John Doe" suspect, USA Today
reported at the time.
"The identity of Mr.
McVeigh's primary co-conspirator, John Doe # 2, was a
key issue in Mr. Nichols' trial defense and the
withheld (documents) regarding the identity of that
person went to the heart of " Nichols' request
for reconsideration, his lawyers claimed in court
documents.
The court later ruled that the
missing documents would have had no effect on the
outcome of the trial.
-Developing-
*
* *
02-14-2002
Coincidence?
Uncanny Resemblance Between Mysterious
Oklahoma Bombing Suspect 'John Doe Number 2' (Left)
And Accused 'Dirty Bomber' Padilla (Right) Noted
What Do YOU Think? Write
The Lightning Editor With
Your Opinion
Developing
Our
Readers Write:
Best artist composite match I
have ever seen. Is anyone even checking on this?
John Lawson
The following
comment on your look alike contest; Kate (see email
below) would do well to remember that it was NOT
"Bush & Co." at bat when the OK bombing
happened, if there is any investigation to be done,
I'd say start w/Bill & Hillary. It was the
'gruesome twosome'
that were 'in charge', so that makes them responsible
does it not? As far as the lookalike
coincidence is concerned, well, except for maybe the
chin, if they aren't the same guy, they could very
well be related. Definately worth
investigating. Keep up the good work SAL! Anolagay
Barefoot
Explains why a U.S. citizen has been
turned over to the Pentagon and held incommunicado,
doesn't it? Bush & Co. can't afford for this guy
to make a statement. Kate@Devtex.com
I, too, thought that picture of Padilla
looked familiar. Let's hope that the current
administration does not ignore thisas the past
administation did.Charlene Wiedeman
That's about as
close to a perfect match as you could find. Stan
Singleton
It's gotta be...........here go the
theories again? On another note your site is awesome.
I've been reading for a while. Go Lightning Go. Mario
Esparza
Did not notice. You have hit the nail on
the head. I knew he looked familiar, you filled in
the blank. txpowers@prodigy.net
A friend just turned me on to your
website..................and you guys are good! Thanks,
Phil R Fernandez
That's so close to Padilla that its
scary. Could it be that this guy just slipped thru
the cracks because we only focused on McVeigh and
Nickles? Is our FBI so self absorbed with image that
they fail to protect us from enemies from without and
within? I hope that there is going to be some
"connecting the dots" on this guy but I'm
not going to hold my breath. He's probably going to
be handled about as great as the door at the Koresh
compound-gone forever. Brenda Hadley
I would say that the resemblance is
enough to warrant some investigation. I hope under
our current President things like this will not be
overlooked or swept under the rug. I say dig in and
find out. Richard Litton
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2001 RG Griffing Publications
