The FBI announced on Wednesday the arrest of a Washington state man for allegedly supplying chemicals used in the bombing of a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, California, last month.
Daniel Park, 32, was apprehended at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York following his return from Poland, according to U.S. Attorney Bill Essayli.
The big picture: Federal authorities claim that Park provided 180 pounds of ammonium nitrate to Guy Edward Bartkus, 25, who carried out the bombing and was killed in the explosion.
- Ammonium nitrate is an explosive precursor that can be utilized in homemade bombs, Essayli explained. Park, a resident of Kent, Washington, had also traveled to Southern California in late January to stay with Bartkus for a period of two weeks.
- Officials have identified Bartkus and Park as members of the anti-natalist movement, a fringe group that opposes childbirth and population growth. The FBI alleges that the attack on the fertility clinic was an intentional act of terrorism orchestrated by Bartkus. Although he attempted to livestream the explosion, the FBI reported that the attempt was unsuccessful.
Driving the news: The explosion severely damaged the American Reproductive Centers fertility clinic in Palm Springs while causing chaos and terror among the witnesses.
- No motive has been ascertained as to why Bartkus specifically targeted the clinic, which offers services for in vitro fertilization and fertility evaluations.
Go deeper: Authorities executed a search warrant at Park’s residence in Seattle and discovered an “explosive recipe” similar to the Oklahoma City bombing.
- Akil Davis, FBI Assistant Director in Charge, confirmed this finding on Wednesday. Additionally, authorities had searched Bartkus’ hometown of Twentynine Palms prior to the arrest.
