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Arizona Mail Bomb Injures Three in Possible Hate Crime
Posted: March 3, 2004
Three employees of the Office of Diversity and Dialogue in the Arizona city of Scottsdale were injured on February 26, 2004, when a bomb delivered through the mail exploded in their office. The authorities are investigating the incident as a possible hate crime.
The explosion occurred when Don Logan, the director of Scottsdale's Office of Diversity and Dialogue, opened a notebook sized package addressed to him that was carrying a bomb. The blast left a 3 and 1/2 inch-wide hole in Logan's desk and shot shrapnel into the walls, ceiling and floor.
Logan, 48, suffered serious burns on his hands and arms. Two of Logan's co-workers, Renita Linyard and Jacque Bell, were also injured in the explosion.
The Office of Diversity and Dialogue, located in the Scottsdale's Human Resources Building, offers community training and outreach programs and handles various complaints from city employees and citizens, including racial and sex discrimination grievances. Logan was selected to head the office in 1998 when the city faced a lawsuit alleging police racism.
Although it is still unknown whether the victims were targeted because of their work, Bob Maes, a spokesman for the U.S. Postal Inspection Service said, "History has shown us that the bomber is someone who has an issue with the victim, and we are basically focusing on that one victim." In an effort to find clues about the bomb maker, investigators have recreated the bomb.
Logan, who is African-American, was well-known in the community for sponsoring community forums, arranging diversity awards, and promoting yearly dinners in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr.
The U.S. Postal Inspection Service, which is conducting an investigation, is offering a $100,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for the attack.
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