Home » Physical Security » Critical Infrastructure

Special Delivery: Domestic Terrorism

William Krar, 63 (at left), was arrested after federal agents raided his rented storage unit south of Tyler, Texas, in April 2003.

September 30, 2004 — CSO — William Krar, 63 (at left), was arrested after federal agents raided his rented storage unit south of Tyler, Texas, in April 2003. They found half a million rounds of ammunition, more than 60 pipe bombs, as well as machine guns, silencers and remote-controlled bombs. Also on hand was nearly 2 pounds of military-grade sodium cyanide. Krar pleaded guilty to possessing a dangerous chemical weapon and was sentenced to more than 11 years in prison.

He was caught because a package of counterfeit documents and ID cards that he had tried to ship to a member of a New Jersey militia group got misdelivered, turned in and traced to him.

According to a Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) report, Americans were responsible for about three-quarters of the 335 incidents between 1980 and 2000 that the FBI has classified as suspected or confirmed terrorism.

After 9/11, domestic violent extremists and hate groups dwindled in size and activity. But according to The Intelligence Report, these groups have been through realignments and are now on the rise. The report counted 751 group chapters in 2003, up 6 percent from 2002. Hate websites also saw a 12 percent increase. And the CFR estimates that 10,000 to 100,000 people belong to right-wing militia groups.

-Sandy Kendall