Federal investigators issued a search warrant at American Storage in Colorado Springs, Colo., this week as part of an ongoing investigation involving Thaddeus Murphy, who was arrested in connection to the Jan. 6 explosion near the city’s NAACP office. Agents from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) were assisted by local police at the storage facility where Murphy rented a unit, according to news sources.
News reports didn’t specify what agents were looking for, but the Colorado Springs explosives unit was behind the property on Vincent Drive, and a K-9 police unit was also at the scene, according to a report from news station KOAA.
FBI agents later searched a home in the 6700 block of Palace Drive, about a mile from the storage facility, where Murphy was apparently living, according to The Associated Press (AP). At one point, police temporarily closed Palace Drive at York Road, according to KOAA. Court records confirm both searches were in connection to Murphy, the AP reported.
Court records indicate Murphy admitted to making a pipe bomb because he was upset about his finances. He allegedly targeted an accountant who worked in the same building as the offices for the local chapter of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. Murphy apparently told investigators the accountant wouldn't return his tax records or phone calls, the AP reported.
No one was injured in the January explosion, which caused only minor damage. Murphy, 44, was charged with arson and being a felon in possession of a firearm.
