Palm Springs bombing: Washington man arrested for allegedly aiding suspect
A 32-year-old Washington man was arrested in connection with the car bombing last month outside a Palm Springs fertility clinic.
Daniel Park of Kent, Washington, was arrested in Poland and taken into custody by the FBI at John F. Kennedy Airport in New York City, for allegedly aiding bomber Guy Edward Bartkus. The FBI alleged Park shipped ammonium nitrate to Bartkus and visited him in January and February this year.
The U.S. Attorney's Office and the FBI held a press conference Wednesday morning to reveal new details about the case. The FBI alleged that Park directly sent 180 pounds of ammonium nitrate, a chemical typically used as fertilizer, to Bartkus and purchased an additional 90 pounds, which was shipped to Bartkus.
Park, who is a U.S. citizen, has been arrested on suspicion of providing material support to a terrorist. He is expected to make his first appearance at the U.S. District Court in Brooklyn later today.
"Our citizens deserve to live in a country where they feel safe," Bill Essayli, U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, said during the press conference. "We will continue to pursue all leads. This is an ongoing, active, investigation and we will bring anyone involved to justice."
The vehicle bomb, which occurred on May 17, killed Bartkus and injured four others. The FBI has called the bombing an intentional act of terrorism. It is believed Bartkus targeted the American Reproductive Centers in Palm Springs because he held "antinatalist" beliefs.
Park also shared Bartkus' belief system, the FBI said on Wednesday. Like Bartkus, he posted about his beliefs online, going back as far as 2016.
The two met in person for two weeks in late January and early February to conduct experiments in a detached garage on the Twentynine Palms residence where Bartkus lived, according to the FBI.
Park had an explosives recipe similar to the one used to conduct the 1995 bombing of a federal building in Oklahoma City that killed 168 people and injured 684, Essayli said, adding that the recipe was found after a search warrant was executed in Seattle.
Park is not believed to have been in the Coachella Valley at the time of the bombing. He flew to Poland via Denmark on May 21 before being detained by Polish authorities on May 31. He was formally taken into custody by the FBI when he returned to the United States on June 2.
The U.S. Attorney's Office will request that he be held without bail.
Who is Daniel Park, the alleged Palm Springs bombing co-conspirator?
Daniel Park of Kent, Washington, about 40 minutes south of Seattle, is accused of shipping 270 pounds of ammonium nitrate to Bartkus in the days leading up to the Palm Springs attack.
The FBI said Park and Bartkus met on an internet forum, and Park spent two weeks visiting Bartkus' residence in late January/early February this year, spending time running tests for the bombing.
Days after the bombing, the FBI said, Parks left the U.S. to go to Europe.
When asked by a reporter whether anyone else is suspected in the bombing, the FBI said they could not answer the question as the case remains active and under investigation.
When reached by USA TODAY, the Port Authority Police Department directed questions to the FBI.
USA TODAY has also reached out to the NYPD.
What is ammonium nitrate?
Ammonium nitrate is explosive under certain conditions. Mixed with something flammable and exposed to flame, it can explode.
Timothy McVeigh used two tons of ammonium nitrate mixed with fuel oil to destroy the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, killing 168 people in 1995.
But it's not a danger that exists in many places. That's because the chemical, once a popular fertilizer, is rarely used these days, USA TODAY reported in 2013.
Ammonium nitrate was the main suspected chemical in a Texas explosion that killed 14 people in April 2013. The explosion at West Fertilizer Co. also injured more than 200 and left at least 50 homes uninhabitable.
According to the Department of Homeland Security, licensed businesses, like fertilizer suppliers or mining companies, can legally ship ammonium nitrate for legitimate purposes. The shipments, though, must be labeled, tracked, and reported.
How Park purchased or sent the ammonium nitrate to Bartkus is unclear.
New details revealed in complaint
A criminal complaint filed in U.S. District Court by the government reveals some previously unreported details on the bombing. The document, meant to establish probable cause for the arrest of Park, shows evidence that links Park and Bartkus to the explosion in Palm Springs.
More: Read the federal complaint against the Washington man linked to Palm Springs bombing
One of the new details involves the timing of the bombing. Bartkus asked to borrow the car of one of his family members, giving the excuse that he wanted to attend a protest, according to the complaint. Bartkus initially wanted to borrow the car on Friday, May 16, but had to delay the trip by a day because a family member needed the car for work.
In addition, the complaint describes Bartkus as questioning artificial intelligence about the best methods for constructing a bomb. When asked about specific types of fuels that could be mixed with ammonium nitrate, the AI chatbot, which was not identified in the complaint, encouraged Bartkus to continue his line of experimentation.
What we know about the Palm Springs fertility clinic bombing
At around 10:52 a.m., Saturday, May 17, a powerful explosion occurred in Palm Springs in a parking lot behind American Reproductive Centers, a fertility clinic that provided in vitro fertilization treatment to local women.
The explosion caused the partial collapse of the building and damaged others within several blocks. The city estimates that between $6 million and $12 million in damage occurred because of the blast.
Four people were injured. Eyewitnesses report the injuries in the Denny's restaurant, across the street from the parking lot.
Who was Guy Edward Bartkus, the suspected bomber?
The FBI has identified Twentynine Palms resident Guy Edward Bartkus as the suspected bomber. His home, which he shared with his mother, has been extensively searched by federal agents.
In recordings and writings posted online that have been linked to Bartkus, although not officially confirmed by the FBI, the suspect discussed his motivations for the bombing. He held an "antinatalist" view of the world, stating that new human life should not be created because life inherently involves suffering.
He also pointed to the recent suicide of one of his best friends as a motivating factor.
Bartkus' father described his son as a computer whiz with a good heart. He said Bartkus built his own computers from the age of 9 and was an avid gamer.
When Bartkus was about 8 years old, his father said the boy burned down their house in a community north of Yucca Valley by playing with matches.
Investigators zero in on potential accomplices
Since the bombing, investigators have searched for individuals who may have known about the attack before it occurred.
Palm Springs Police Chief Andy Mills has said Bartkus discussed explosives online as far back as 2022.
"I don't know that he had any help. I do know that he was discussing this in chat rooms and on YouTube channels, he was experimenting with different explosives," Mills told The Desert Sun on May 20. "There was a conversation in the dark web, if you will, over this kind of thing."
Timeline: How the Palm Springs Bombing unfolded
Here are the key events leading up to and following the deadly explosion:
What was the Palm Springs bombing suspect's beliefs?
Authorities have said Bartkus was motivated by 'extreme 'nihilistic and anti-life beliefs.''
'Authorities are examining an online manifesto and audio recordings linked to Bartkus, in which he expressed hostility towards human reproduction and cited his existential anger and despair following the recent death of a close friend,' according to a Palm Springs FAQ on the bombing. 'He specifically threatened violence against an in vitro fertilization (IVF) clinic.'
More: What we know about Guy Bartkus, suspect in Palm Springs fertility clinic bombing
Interpretations of nihilism can vary, and while it can be associated to concepts such as pessimism and cynicism, some thinkers argue differently.
Merriam-Webster defines nihilism as 'a viewpoint that traditional values and beliefs are unfounded and that existence is senseless and useless.'
Britannica describes 20th-century nihilism as encompassing a variety of stances that 'in one sense or another, denied the existence of genuine moral truths or values, rejected the possibility of knowledge or communication, and asserted the ultimate meaningless or purposelessness of life or of the universe.'
The Desert Sun has previously reported that online postings suggest Bartkus was motivated by both "pro-mortalist" views, which argue that life should be ended as soon as possible because it only results in death, and "anti-natalism," the belief that having children is unethical because it only exposes more people to future suffering and death.
Desert Sun reporters and USA TODAY contributed to this story.
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