September 2, 2003
1:00 AM
By: Douglas J. Hagmann, Director, Northeast Intelligence Network
Photo: Collar placed on Wells, FBI
The Northeast Intelligence Network, having its roots in Erie, Pennsylvania, learned some disturbing facts concerning the August 28, 2003 bank robbery that occurred in our hometown. While the basic facts of this case have been widely reported, other "significant" and lesser-known facts have emerged that point to a much more ominous and disconcerting scenario.
Brian D. Wells, 46, an employee of a Pizza shop located on Peach Street in Erie, was sent to deliver two large pizzas to an address that turned out to be a secluded and remote location of a television tower. Approximately one hour later, Wells entered the PNC Bank with a bomb over his chest and handed a detailed note to a teller demanding money, and lifted his shirt to display an explosive device. After receiving approximately $8000 in cash, Wells proceeded with the money and the note to his Geo-Metro and departed the bank property. He was almost immediately pulled over by Pennsylvania State Police at the parking lot of Eyeglass World, another nearby business located on Peach Street not far from the bank. As Wells was being handcuffed by police, he told the responding officers that he had a bomb under his shirt-over his chest. The device was heard beeping, at which point the officers placed Wells on the ground and sought cover on the opposite side of a second police cruiser.
"The Dialogue"
During the next 20-25 minutes, Wells pled with the officers to help him, to remove the bomb, and told the officers that (a group) of (non-white) men "did this." As the police awaited the arrival of the bomb squad, the beeping from the bomb became faster and minutes later, it exploded, killing Wells where he sat.
"The Bomb"
The bomb itself was a rudimentary pipe style bomb with a timing mechanism, which alone is not considered unusual. The manner in which it was attached to Wells, and the "outward" manner it was set to explode however, was indeed unusual. Referring to the manner in which the bomb was placed on Wells, federal and state investigators admitted that they have "never seen anything like this before." Additionally, a secondary device that was potentially related to the bomb was also found later on Wells as his body was being examined. The remnants of the pipe bomb, along with the secondary device, were sent to the FBI lab for immediate analysis. Sources close to the investigation have informed the Northeast Intelligence Network that the wounds to Wells were minimal, with the most likely cause of death resulting from the concussion from the explosion rather than any invasive wounds to his body.
"Other Finds"
In addition to the money recovered from Wellâs vehicle and the original demand note, police found yet another carefully written, multiple page "note" instructing Wells to proceed to other areas of the Erie area where further instructions could be found. Indeed, another note was found by investigators at least one other nearby location. Members of the bomb squad responded to that location and found a container with a note inside. No explosive devices were found at this other location. At least one witness claimed to have seen a Caucasian male "running" from this wooded area near a busy mall at approximately the same time the drama on upper Peach Street was unfolding.
"A Second Related Death"
The case took a hard turn when a coworker of Wells, 43 year-old Robert Pinetti was found dead at his home where he resided with his parents. Although the official cause of death has not been released, it is expected that the ruling will indicate that Pinetti died to a lethal drug overdose.
"Leads Pointing to a Larger Conspiracy"
The Northeast Intelligence Network has learned that a thorough examination of both the Wells and the Pinetti residences failed to uncover any items that could be tied to the planning and execution of the bank robbery. No items that were used in the construction of the bomb, the writing of the notes, or the careful, strategic and tedious planning of the event were located despite thorough searches of the houses and vehicles at both sites.
The failure to locate any evidence that would tie the bomb, the notes and other aspects of this crime, combined with the reported statements made by Wells that a (group) of (non-white) men "did this" to him are certainly suggestive of a larger conspiracy involving more than Wells and Pinetti. Additionally, the time invested in the planning and preparation was obviously extensive, and the unusual method the bomb was attached to Wells is significant. Also significant is the method and manner in which the FBI and ATF agents from Washington and New York responded en masse to Erie.
Although none of the investigators have suggested any links to whatsoever to terrorism, we would be remiss not to point out that the above facts are clearly more suggestive of that possibility than what has been openly reported to date. One only has to consider the utterances of Mr. Wells prior to the bombâs detonation, the time consuming and careful planning that went into the execution of this event, the aggressive actions of the federal agencies, and the host of unanswered questions to open the door to this possibility.
As a total of 50-75 investigators from various federal, state and local law enforcement agencies continue their investigation as of this writing, we refer readers to the following document that provides a comprehensive statistical analysis of bank crimes in the US: http://www.athenaresearch.com/research/bank_crime_stats_2001.pdf.
A review of this document and other studies found at this site clearly illustrates that this case does not fit any known or previously identified method found in the US. With the recent aggressive actions of the US government freezing assets of known terrorist organizations in the US, this might indeed be the beginning of a new trend ö or simply a statistical anomaly in the most acute sense. At the very least, it is a conspiracy of much larger proportions than reported to date.
Source: http://www.hagmannpi.com/terror.htm