The man arrested in connection with a bomb found along a Martin Luther King Day parade route in Spokane, Wash., earlier this year is Kevin William Harpham, 36, of Colville, Wash. Harpham has been charged in U.S. District Court with one count of attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and one count of knowingly possessing an improvised explosive device.
Earlier, The Seattle Times reported that law enforcement was preparing ” to search a house where others associated with the suspect were living” and that the suspects in the case “are apparently affiliated with white supremacists.”
In January, the FBI said the bomb was left in an act of “domestic terrorism,” but said they did not yet have a motive identified.
“It was a viable device, it was planted with the aim of injuring or killing people, and we were fortunate that it did not go off and that people were not killed, we’re just lucky in that regard,” U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder told reporters Wednesday afternoon.
KSRO reports that Harpham is scheduled to make an initial court appearance at 3:30 PM PT Wednesday.
Late Update: The Southern Poverty Law Center tells tells The Spokesman-Review that Harpham was a member of a white supremacist organization.
Additional reporting by Ryan J. Reilly.
Eric Lach
Eric Lach is a reporter for TPM. From 2010 to 2011, he was a news writer in charge of the website’s front page. He has previously written for The Daily, NewYorker.com, GlobalPost and other publications. He can be reached at ericl(at)talkingpointsmemo.com
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