OCALA, Fla. A Florida man is accused of
building nearly a dozen bombs and making plans to plant them in Target stores
along the East Coast, including in Central New York.Mark C. Barnett, 48, of
Ocala, was charged with possession of a firearm (destructive device) affecting
commerce by a previously convicted felon, according to the Department of
Justice.
Barnett hatched the plan with the intention
of drastically lowering Target's stock price, authorities said. Then he planned
to buy up shares cheaply before the price eventually rebounded. The bombs,
according to ATF agents cited in the documents, could have caused property
damage, injury or death.
In the documents, officials allege that
Barnett tried to recruit someone to drive up the east coast of the United
States and place the bombs on Target store shelves. That person, instead,
turned to law enforcement. An investigation was launched, and detectives said
they captured Barnett talking about the plot in a recorded phone call between
him and the person who they say he was trying to hire as an accomplice.
Investigators said Barnett gave that person
gloves and gas money and warned that the bombs could "take your hand
off," according to the documents. People who live in Barnett's
neighborhood told WESH 2 News that several FBI and ATF agents surrounded his
home.
One neighbor said that because Barnett is a
known, convicted sex-offender, his arrest was not shocking, but the accusations
against him are still hard to fathom. Authorities said Barnett built at least
10 improvised bombs and disguised them in food packaging.
He offered a man who had worked for him
$10,000 to place the bombs in Target stores up and down the East Coast. He
delivered the bombs to the man on Feb. 9, authorities said, and asked him to
put the bombs on store shelves from Florida to New York. He also provided a bag
wit gloves, a mask and a license plate cover.
They agreed the man would put one bomb in a
Target as far north as Syracuse and work his way back to Florida, authorities
said. But the man who took the bombs from Barnett was a convicted felon and
confidential source who turned the devices over to federal authorities.
An expert from the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives later determined that the bombs were
functional and could cause damage. Federal agents raided Bentley's house,
finding components similar to the ones used to make the original bombs.
If convicted Barnett could face 10 years in
federal prison. He is currently being held at the Marion County Jail in Florida
on state charges of violating the terms of his probation.
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