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Death of Brian Wells

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File:Brian Wells.jpg
Brian Douglas Wells

Brian Douglas Wells (November 15, 1956 – August 28, 2003) was an American pizza delivery man who was killed by a time bomb fastened to his neck, purportedly under duress from the maker of the bomb. After he was apprehended by the police for robbing a bank, the bomb exploded. The bizarre affair was subject to much attention in the mass media.

In a July 2007 indictment, federal prosecutors alleged that Wells had been involved in the planning of the botched crime. Two of his co-conspirators, Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong and Kenneth Barnes, were indicted by a federal grand jury on charges of bank robbery, conspiracy, and weapons charges. A third co-conspirator, William Stockton, was given immunity in exchange for his testimony.[1] Kenneth Barnes subsequently pleaded guilty in September 2008 and largely confirmed that Wells was indeed involved in planning the robbery but also revealed Wells was under the impression an actual bomb would not be used. When he discovered the bomb was real, Barnes said a pistol was fired, and witnesses confirmed hearing a gunshot, in order to force Wells' compliance. [2] On December 4, 2008, Barnes was sentenced to 45 years in federal prison for his role in the robbery/murder by U.S. District Judge Sean J. McLaughlin. [3]

The event

Wells had dropped out of high school in 1973. For nearly 30 years, he had worked as a pizza delivery man and was considered a "valued and trusted employee" of the "Mama Mia Pizzeria" in Template:City-state. On the afternoon of August 28, 2003, Wells received a call to deliver two pizzas to an address a few miles from the pizzeria. It was later found that the address was that of WSEE-TV's transmission tower[4] at the end of a dirt road.

According to law enforcement reports, Wells was meeting people he thought were his accomplices, including Barnes. Wells participated in the planning for the robbery; he had been told the bomb was going to be fake[5] and he was to claim that three men forced the bomb on him and he was to tell police he was a hostage.[6]

At the television tower Wells, for the first time, learned that the device was real. He wrestled with the men and tried to flee, but one of them fired a gun, causing Wells to stop. They gave him a sophisticated homemade shotgun, which looked like an oddly shaped cane, and told him to use it if he found trouble at the bank. Wells then entered a bank with the shotgun and demanded $250,000. When police intervened, Wells claimed that three unnamed people had placed a bomb around his neck, provided him with the shotgun, and told him that he had to commit the robbery and several other tasks, otherwise he would be killed.

Triple-banded metal collar that was locked around Wells' neck.
Cane-like shotgun used by Wells during the bank robbery.

At first, the police made no attempt to disarm the device. The bomb squad was finally called at 3:04 PM, at least 30 minutes after the first 9-1-1 call. At 3:18 PM, the bomb detonated, blasting a fist-sized hole in Wells' chest just three minutes before the bomb squad arrived. It is now believed that Wells was killed by Diehl-Armstrong and her co-conspirators to reduce witnesses against herself and others.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name (see the help page). The event was also broadcast on television and subsequently the footage found its way to video sharing sites.

A note found on Wells had instructions for him to carry out four tasks—the first of which was the bank robbery—in a set period of time before the bomb went off. Wells would gain extra time with the completion of each task. However, it was later determined that regardless of what had unfolded, Wells would never have had enough time to complete the tasks to get the bomb defused.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name (see the help page).

Wells was drawn into the plot through Barnes, whom he knew through a prostitute who often used Barnes' home as a place to have sex with customers.[7] The whole plot was hatched to get funds to pay Barnes enough money to kill Diehl-Armstrong's father, so Diehl-Armstrong could get an inheritance, authorities said. However, Wells got nowhere near the $125,000 needed for the killing. Furthermore, the inheritance Diehl-Armstrong coveted was largely spent.

Media attention

When the story first broke, many believed the incident to be terrorism related.[8]

On November 5, 2005 , January 6, 2007, and July 14, 2007, the story of Wells was featured on America's Most Wanted with newly released evidence in hopes that officials could gather new clues behind the puzzling case.[9]

On October 13, 2006, the story was featured on Anderson Cooper 360. The show dealt with the FBI's most mysterious cases, and featured John Walsh, host of America's Most Wanted. A document from the Erie police stated that "this investigation is now at a critical point."

On January 6, 2007, Wells was featured on Fox News Channel's In the Line Up profiling new evidence regarding new suspects and new details in the case.

The story of Wells was used as a basis for the pilot episode of 2006 series Heist.[citation needed], and was also used as the basis for "Pas de Deux", an episode of Law & Order: Criminal Intent.[citation needed] Literary references to the crime include a mention in Dean Koontz's 2006 fictional thriller novel The Husband.[citation needed]

There are also nonfictional popular culture references, including a feature on The 99 Most Bizarre: Crimes. It was one of the "Most Bizarre" on the show. A collection of news articles that reported developments in the Brian Wells story was analyzed in a scientific study of information novelty.[10]

2007 developments

On February 16, 2007 the Associated Press reported that "the case has been solved and indictments are expected, likely by next month."[11] A federal grand jury in Erie, PA was still hearing evidence in the case as of May 13, 2007, according to the Erie Times-News.[12] According to the paper, three suspects were identified as perpetrators of the plot.[13]

On July 10, 2007 charges were filed against two individuals for crimes related to the robbery and death. Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong (who was imprisoned on an unrelated murder charge at the time) was charged with three criminal acts: bank robbery, conspiracy to commit bank robbery and felony use of a firearm in connection with a crime. Kenneth Barnes (who was imprisoned on unrelated drug charges at the time) was also charged without disclosure of the specific crimes.[14]

On July 11, 2007 the US Attorney's office[15] and the FBI announced that Brian Douglas Wells had been named as a co-conspirator because of his participation in the execution of the robbery. U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan argued that Wells' action of actually robbing the bank made him a co-conspirator in the crime. Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong and Kenneth Barnes had been charged with felonies in the case. A third person in the case, Floyd Stockton, 60, was given immunity in a deal with prosecutors to testify against Barnes and Diehl-Armstrong.Cite error: The opening <ref> tag is malformed or has a bad name (see the help page). Despite naming Wells as a co-conspirator, U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan said she couldn't comment on what his motive might have been.[16]

2008 developments

On July 29, 2008 A federal judge ruled that Marjorie Diehl-Armstrong was mentally incompetent to stand trial for the bombing. She has a hearing scheduled in November 2008 to decide if she will be competent at that time to stand trial.[17]

On September 3, 2008 Kenneth Barnes pleaded guilty to conspiring to rob a bank and to aiding and abetting. [18][2]On December 3, 2008 Kenneth Barnes was sentenced to 45 years in prison by a Federal judge in Erie for his role in the crime. [19][20]

On December 4, 2008 Kenneth Barnes was sentenced to 45 years in prison for the event that ended in Wells' death. [1]

See also

References

  1. ^ Caniglia, John (2007). ""Brian Wells" Erie bombing 'victim' was in on bank robbery". Plain Dealer. {{cite journal}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |coauthors= (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  2. ^ a b "Defendant in Pennsylvania Collar-Bomb Bank Robbery Case Pleads Guilty". Department of Justice. 2008-09-02. Retrieved 2008-11-03.
  3. ^ Palattella, Ed (2008). "Barnes gets 45 years: Co-defendant in Wells case apologizes". Erie Times-News. {{cite journal}}: Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
  4. ^ http://www.zgeek.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11163
  5. ^ Nephin, Dan (2007-07-12). "Indictment: Bomb Victim in on Bank Plot". Associated Press. Retrieved 2007-07-12.
  6. ^ Caniglia, John (2007-07-12). "Double-crossed: Erie pizza bomber Brian Wells was both victim and conspirator". The Cleveland Plain Dealer. p. 3. Retrieved 2007-07-15.
  7. ^

    Wells and the woman, Jessica Hoopsick, had sex approximately twice a month for about five years, sometimes at a home on Perry Street in Erie. Barnes, a convicted cocaine dealer, would rent rooms to prostitutes and their clients in exchange for drugs and cash. She even testified before a federal grand jury about Wells' link to Barnes, her attorney said.
  8. ^ USATODAY.com - Was pizza deliverer a robber or a victim?
  9. ^ "The Erie Collar Bomber". America's Most Wanted. Retrieved 2006-09-05.
  10. ^ "Newsjunkie: Providing Personalized Newsfeeds via Analysis of Information Novelty" (PDF). Microsoft Research. Retrieved 2006-09-05. [PDF] (see Figure 5 in Section 5.2 of the paper)
  11. ^ Nephin, Dan (2007-07-12). "Indictment: Bomb Victim in on Bank Plot". Associated Press. Retrieved 2007-07-12.
  12. ^ GoErie.com: Diehl-Armstrong claims FBI framing her
  13. ^ GoErie.com: Newest links to day of bomb
  14. ^ "Two Charged in the Pizza Bomber Case". ABC News. Retrieved 2007-07-10.
  15. ^ America's Most Wanted
  16. ^ Nephin, Dan (2007-07-11). "Indictment: Bomb victim in on bank plot". Yahoo News. Retrieved 2007-07-11.
  17. ^ "Diehl Armstrong: Mentally Incompetent". W.I.C.U 12. 2008-07-29. Retrieved 2008-08-29.
  18. ^ "Pennsylvania 'Pizza Bomber' Co-Defendant Pleads Guilty in Bizarre Bank Heist Plot". Fox News. 2008-09-02. Retrieved 2008-09-02.
  19. ^ "Man Gets 45 Years in Prison in Pa. Collarbomb Case". ABC News. 2008-12-03. Retrieved 2008-12-03.
  20. ^ "Kenneth Barnes sentenced to 45 years in federal prison". BNO News. 2008-12-03. Retrieved 2008-12-03.
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