1,100 LBS of explosives stolen in Colorado, California

[nystate]

DENVER — Federal agents said Friday they are investigating the theft of 1,100 pounds of an explosive chemical from construction companies in Colorado and California in the past week.

Both thefts involve ammonium nitrate (search), a key ingredient in the bomb that destroyed the Oklahoma City federal building (search) in 1995.

In the first heist, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (search) issued a nationwide alert Monday after eight 50-pound bags of an ammonium nitrate-based explosive vanished from the Pike View Quarry near Colorado Springs.

Then 700 pounds of an ammonium nitrate product were stolen this week from a similar business in San Diego County, Calif., ATF agent Rich Marianos said Friday.

"We're trying to check to see if it's similar or if we can rule out if it's involved in our theft," Marianos said.

The California theft from Tom C. Dyke Drilling and Blasting in Alpine, about 30 miles east of San Diego, happened Sunday or Monday, San Diego County sheriff's officials said. Thieves forced their way into a locked trailer and took 14 50-pound bags.

Authorities have not named any suspects in the thefts. A half-dozen homes and businesses in the Colorado Springs area have been searched.

"There really hasn't been much concrete information to go on in this case," Colorado Springs police Lt. Skip Arms said. "There's equally the possibility it was somebody who had a legitimate blasting job and didn't want to pay for the chemicals to someone with bad intentions."

Ammonium nitrate is used as fertilizer, but can become a powerful explosive when mixed with fuel oil. The government estimated about 4,800 pounds of ammonium nitrate fertilizer was used to make the bomb that killed 168 people in Oklahoma City.

Authorities had said the material stolen in Colorado was already mixed with fuel oil and had a strong diesel fuel odor. They were not immediately able to say whether the ammonium nitrate that vanished in California was also part of a mixture.

[southerngale]

I saw this on Fox News a short while ago. Kind of scary if you ask me! :o

[Colin]

Hmmmm...very interesting but I wouldn't get too scared...YET.

[JetMaxx]

Not scared....but it is very concerning. 1100 lbs of Sodium Nitrite can cause a lot of death and destruction; the fact the thefts occurred in the Western U.S. is also alarming because several terrorism experts I've heard believe the next "9/11" type large-scale attack will occur in a west coast city such as L.A. or Seattle

[blizzard]

-Ammonium Nitrate can be found in most fertilizers also. Doesn't take much to make a bomb out of regular fertilizer either. The bags stolen are far more potent than fertilizer though. Wee Doggies, that could make one Heck of a hole..