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Prosecutors Say Man Charged for Recruiting Station Explosion Holds Grudge Against Air Force

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The man accused of bombing a Bixby Air Force Recruiting Station has been charged.

Federal prosecutors say Benjamin Roden holds a grudge against that branch of the military. Roden was arraigned Wednesday on felony charges related to Monday night’s explosion. Acting U.S. Attorney Loretta Radford said the former senior airman discovered he couldn't complete the training needed to become an Air Force electrician.

"Ultimately, he resigned from the Air Force, tried to obtain entry into the Marines. They would not accept him," Radford said. "He believed — or, at least, our investigations revealed that he believed it was the Air Force that was keeping him from becoming a member of the Marines."

The 28-year-old's last commanding officer told investigators Roden wanted to join the Marines but blamed the Air Force after he wasn’t accepted.

Roden is charged with malicious damage to federal property by use of an explosive, use of an explosive to commit a federal felony and two counts of destruction to federal property. Radford said the investigation is ongoing.

"While we do not believe that the evidence that we’ve gathered thus far indicates domestic terrorism, we also don’t want to rule out the possibility that this might involve domestic terrorism," Radford said.

Radford wants Roden held without bond because a search of his apartment turned up bomb-making materials.

"Individuals who secret [sic] and make pipe bombs, in my opinion, should not be allowed to live among the citizens of the Northern District," Radford said.

The federal complaint says Roden sent angry letters to the Air National Guard Base in Tulsa that were received Monday. The complaint also ties Roden to vandalism of a reserve recruiter's U.S. government car, which happened Sunday. All the tires were slashed and all the windows were broken.

Roden is due in court again Friday. Prosecutors expect they'll get a grand jury indictment on their charges then.

Matt Trotter joined KWGS as a reporter in 2013. Before coming to Public Radio Tulsa, he was the investigative producer at KJRH. His freelance work has appeared in the Los Angeles Times and on MSNBC and CNN.