video: federal charges considered in oregon bank bombing
from kgw: Court records obtained by KGW suggest the two Oregon men charged in connection with a deadly bank bombing in December often talked about robbing a bank and even practiced a dry-run in Woodburn in 1994. Bruce Turnidge and his son Joshua Turnidge are facing aggravated murder charges for the December 12th blast that killed a police officer, a state trooper and critically injured a police chief. According to a police affidavit, a family friend, Ronald Laughlin, stated that he heard Bruce, Joshua and another family member who has not been charged in the case “speak so often about robbing banks that it became like ‘white noise’. Often, Laughlin said, they’d “discuss methods of robbery including diversions.” Laughlin described the men as Constitutionalists and anti-government.
flashback: 2 oregon cops killed after bringing bomb inside bank
oregon soldier stole $700k cash from iraqi relief fund
from belfast telegraph: Wads of $100 bills mailed from Iraq to Oregon first made investigators suspect that a US Army captain, charged with stealing almost $700,000 (£0.5m) while serving in Iraq, was pilfering from a US government emergency fund. Captain Michael Dung Nguyen was put in charge of the money when he served as civil affairs officer for his battalion between April 2007 and June 2008. The $690,000 came from the Commander's Emergency Response Programme – money put aside so it could be immediately dispensed by US commanders to win Iraqi support by providing humanitarian relief and paying for small construction projects. Capt Nguyen, 28, allegedly made limited and ineffectual efforts to hide the fact he was siphoning off large amounts of money. He mailed bundles of $100 bills back to his home in Oregon and opened bank accounts there and in other areas. His deposits were each for under $10,000 to avoid detection, but often he would make several deposits on the same day. At one point, he had $300,000 in cash in a safe, a federal grand jury in Portland was told.
oregon veteran disabled by iraq's 'agent orange'
from oregonian: The soldiers worried about Saddam Hussein loyalists, not the dust. Dust coated the Oregon Army National Guardsmen's combat boots and caked their skin as they protected Halliburton KBR contractors restoring oil flow in Iraq in 2003. Dust poofed from the soldiers' uniforms as they crowded into vans at the end of the day and shared tents at night. When the dust blew onto Spc. Larry Roberta's ready-to-eat meal, he rinsed the chicken patty with his canteen water and ate it. Six months later, doctors discovered the flap into Roberta's stomach had disintegrated. Six years later, the Marine and former police officer can no longer walk to the mailbox or work. Another Oregon soldier, Sgt. Nicholas Thomas, died of complications of leukemia at age 21. Three others have reported lung problems to headquarters. Five more told The Oregonian they suffer chronic coughs, rashes and immune system disorders. The same Oregon Guard soldiers who went into Iraq without adequate body armor or up-armored Humvees face another dubious first: exposure to hexavalent chromium, which greatly increases their risk of cancer and other diseases. It was in the orange and yellow dust spread over half the Qarmat Ali water treatment plant by fleeing Saddam supporters. Scientists call the carcinogen a Trojan horse because the damage may not be immediately obvious. Over time, people can develop different cancers, breathing problems, stomach ulcers or damage to the digestive tract. "This is our Agent Orange," says Scott Ashby, who served in the Oregon Guard.
August 7, 2020
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