New questions in deadly blast

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Massey approached the agents after talking extensively to The Star. Because of the significance of Massey’s claims, The Star conducted a polygraph examination which showed that he had credible information about the crime. A second lie detector test, by one of the foremost polygraph examiners in the United States, also found Massey had credible information that indicated he saw the fire being set and that the five people now imprisoned were not on the site.

Massey’s statements to the ATF prompted Assistant U.S. Attorney Paul S. Becker, who prosecuted the five defendants, to write defense attorneys.

“In essence, Mr. Massey … saw a security guard, Donna Costanza, moving around the site,” Becker wrote in a Feb. 7 letter obtained by The Star. “Mr. Massey stated that he saw ‘flashes’ on pickup trucks on the hill and the side of the road when he saw Ms. Costanza. Mr. Massey also stated that security guard Debbie Riggs had earlier asked him to set fire to her truck for an insurance fraud.”

Becker told the attorneys he was making Massey’s statements available “out of an abundance of caution rather than any belief by the investigators or prosecutors of the veracity of Mr. Massey’s current statements.”

Becker told the newspaper that the U.S. attorney’s office “has no intention of opening a new investigation, because we don’t believe any of the information in the (ATF) report.”

Asked why, Becker said his office had reviewed the evidence and determined Massey’s claims were not credible. In an earlier interview, Becker said that authorities had long ago determined there was no evidence implicating the security guards.

“If the defense attorneys want to do something with it (Massey’s allegations), then it is their job to do so,” Becker added.

One of the attorneys said she would do that, and she plans to use Massey’s allegations as part of an effort to reopen the case.

“I think his statement raises troubling questions, and regardless of whether you believe Massey’s allegations, they certainly suggest the need for further investigating,” said Kansas City attorney Cheryl Pilate.

“The notion that some person or persons other than the defendants caused the explosions is not only entirely plausible but is also quite believable. I believe it is critical to see Mr. Massey’s allegations tested in a courtroom which provides the appropriate forum for examining the charges and his credibility,” Pilate added.

Becker’s speed in releasing the ATF’s investigative report is a marked departure from his actions shortly after the five defendants were convicted.

The newspaper has obtained a government memorandum showing that months after the convictions, the ATF was still receiving calls from people claiming to have additional information about the crime.

However, Becker ordered the agents not to accept information about the case over the phone. He instructed agents to tell callers to put their information in writing and mail it to the U.S. attorney’s office, according to the Oct. 28, 1997, memo obtained under the Freedom of Information Act.

That way, the memorandum added, “the employee receiving the call should make no report, since you have received no information.”

Becker said in an interview, “I wanted to have a record someone else could follow up on. I was trying to preserve random tips in some way.”

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