this one is mad ☞ Death of Brian Wells

death by explosive collar

Investigators concluded Wells was a willing participant in the robbery, but was told the bomb was fake.

He was described as “childlike”. At the time of the bank robbery, he had been working at Mama Mia’s Pizza-Ria for at least ten years.

Diehl-Armstrong, Barnes, and Rothstein all seem to have suffered from compulsive hoarding.

In 1984, she killed her boyfriend Robert Thomas by shooting him six times as he lay on the couch; she was subsequently acquitted of murder, claiming it was self-defense. Her husband and several other partners also died under suspicious circumstances.

Barnes was a retired television repairman, crack cocaine dealer, and Diehl-Armstrong’s “fishing buddy”. He suffered from diabetes

He was implicated in a 1977 murder after he gave a handgun to a friend who used it to murder a romantic rival; he later attempted to destroy the weapon but was granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for his testimony.

Rothstein was a handyman and part-time shop teacher, and was part of a group called the “fractured intellectuals”— intelligent people who were not well-adjusted.

Floyd Stockton was a convicted rapist of a disabled teenager and lived as a fugitive at Rothstein’s house.

The bomb used in the killing consisted of a hinged collar that worked like a large handcuff to go around the neck, four keyholes that went under the chin, and a rectangular housing containing two pipe bombs and two kitchen timers. One electronic timer hung down over the chest. The device had several decoys, such as unconnected wires, a toy cell phone, and deceptive warning stickers.

The instructions also included a scavenger hunt, listing a series of strictly-timed tasks of collecting keys that would delay detonation and eventually defuse the bomb. The pages warned that Wells would be under constant surveillance and any attempts to contact authorities would result in the bomb’s detonation. “ACT NOW, THINK LATER OR YOU WILL DIE!” was scrawled at the bottom of the instructions.

He appeared confident as he left the bank, swinging his cane gun and the bag of money “like Charlie Chaplin” according to one witness.

The collar of the bomb was still intact so authorities were forced to sever Wells’ head from his body so the bomb could be retained and investigated.

On September 20, 2003, Rothstein, who lived near the television tower, called police to inform them the body of a man, James Roden, was hidden in a freezer in a garage at his house.

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