THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1994, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Monday, December 12, 1994 TAG: 9412120036
SECTION: FRONT PAGE: A1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
DATELINE: NEWARK, N.J. LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
A bomber who has killed one person and injured 23 others over the past 16 years appears to have struck again, this time killing an advertising executive with a mail bomb, the FBI said Sunday.
Thomas J. Mosser, 50, was killed Saturday in his kitchen in suburban North Caldwell when he opened a small package addressed to him and delivered by the Postal Service, FBI agent Barry Mawn said.
No motive had been determined, but the FBI believes Mosser's death is linked to what it code-names the ``Unabom'' series of mail bombs sent to university professors and executives of airlines and computer companies in the United States, Mawn said.
``The components of the bomb, its construction, make us believe the bombs are linked,'' Mawn said. He would not elaborate on the makeup of the bomb that killed Mosser but said it was ``extremely powerful.''
He said he did not know where the package originated.
The FBI believes the person who has been making and sending the bombs is a white male in his 30s or 40s with a high school education. Mawn would not elaborate on how the FBI came up with the composite.
The FBI is offering a $1 million reward for information in the bombings.
Mosser's wife, Susan, received the package Friday but her husband did not open it until Saturday, said the sheriff of Essex County, Armando Fontoura. Susan Mosser did not have to sign for the package, he said.
Susan Mosser described the package as small, neatly wrapped and white. Mawn said it was the size of a videotape.
Mosser lived with his wife and two children, ages 13 years and 15 months. They were all home at the time of the blast, along with a neighbor's child who was visiting. None of them was injured.
The package exploded in Mosser's hand and blew a large hole in the kitchen counter, filling the house with thick smoke.
Mosser recently was promoted to general manager and executive vice president at Young & Rubicam Inc. in New York. Mawn said he did not know whether Mosser's accounts had any relationship to any of the bomber's previous targets.
There is no evidence that Mosser was involved in organized crime or was a witness in a criminal trial, or of any threats against him or his family, Mawn said.
The first ``Unabom'' package bombs were mailed in 1978, Mawn said. Cases linked to the bomber were in Illinois, California, Utah, Tennessee, Michigan and Washington state.
The other death linked to the series occurred on Dec. 11, 1985, when a package exploded as Hugh Scrutton picked it up near his Sacramento, Calif., computer rental store.
Targets of other bombs have included a geneticist at the University of California-San Francisco and a computer scientist at Yale University.
Tracking down the suspect has been difficult because of little evidence, Mawn said. MEMO: ``UNABOM'' LINKS
May 25, 1978. One person injured at University of Illinois at
Chicago.
May 9, 1979. One person injured at Northwestern University, Evanston,
Ill.
Nov. 15, 1979. Twelve people suffered smoke inhalation when bomb
exploded in cargo hold of American Airlines flight.
June 10, 1980. Former United Airlines president injured at home in
Chicago area.
Oct. 8, 1981. Bomb disarmed in classroom at University of Utah, Salt
Lake City.
May 5, 1982. One person injured at Vanderbilt University in
Nashville; package addressed to a professor.
July 2, 1982. Professor in electrical engineering and computer
science injured in lounge at University of California-Berkeley.
May 8, 1985. Police disarm bomb mailed to the Boeing Co. in Auburn,
Wash.
May 15, 1985. One person injured by bomb found in computer room at
University of California-Berkeley.
Nov. 15, 1985. Secretary injured by package mailed to professor at
University of Michigan at Ann Arbor.
Dec. 11, 1985. Man killed by bomb found near computer rental store in
Sacramento, Calif.
Feb. 20, 1987. Man injured by bomb behind computer store in Salt Lake
City.
June 22, 1993. Geneticist at University of California-San Francisco
injured by bomb sent to his home.
June 24, 1993. Yale University computer scientist injured in office.
by CNB