FBI Seeks Help, Offers Reward in Olympic Bombing

WASHINGTON —  Reflecting the stymied investigation into the pipe-bomb explosion that marred the summer Olympics in Atlanta, FBI officials asked the public on Monday for photographs and other information that might help solve the crime and offered up to $500,000 in reward money.

While terming the appeal a good idea, some law enforcement experts questioned its timing. “It’s a bit late for reward money,” a former Justice Department official remarked. “They’ve obviously drilled a lot of dry holes.”

The appeal comes six weeks after the FBI cleared Richard Jewell of suspicion in the July 27 explosion, which killed one woman and injured more than 100 in Centennial Olympic Park. Additionally, a cameraman rushing to the scene died of a heart attack.

Also on Monday, Jewell reached an undisclosed financial settlement with NBC over comments made on the air primarily by the network’s news anchorman, Tom Brokaw, after the security guard had emerged as the target of the FBI investigation.

Shortly before the bomb detonated, Jewell, 33, had alerted authorities that a knapsack had been left in the park, which allowed an evacuation to begin. But after being hailed as a hero, Jewell quickly became the prime suspect.

In a July 30 broadcast, Brokaw said: “The speculation is that the FBI is close to making the case, in their language. They probably have enough to arrest [Jewell] right now . . . but you also want to have enough to convict him as well. There are still some holes in this case.”

NBC has defended its reporting, noting that Brokaw concluded the segment by saying, “Please, understand absolutely that he is only the focus of this investigation. He’s not even a suspect yet.”

A lawyer for Jewell said Monday that his client intends to proceed with plans to sue the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, which first reported that Jewell had become the main suspect.

FBI Deputy Director Weldon Kennedy, addressing a news conference in Atlanta on Monday, denied that the long investigation had stalled.

In his appeal for public help, Kennedy said: “We firmly believe that somewhere, someone has a photograph of [the perpetrator] carrying this bomb into the park. They may not know it. They may not realize they have it.”

The former Justice Department official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, called the request for more help and the reward offer “a late alternative that shows they’re unable to solve this case with more traditional methods.”

FBI officials are seeking any photos or videotapes taken in the park in downtown Atlanta on Friday, July 26, or Saturday, July 27. The bomb exploded about 1:20 a.m. as a crowd listened to a concert that was part of the Olympic festivities.

A toll-free hotline, 1-888-324-9797, has been set up for anyone with information about the bombing.

At his briefing, Kennedy played the tape of a 911 phone call to police in which the caller warned that an explosion was imminent.

Although authorities released a transcript of the call months ago, this was the first time that they had publicly played the tape.

The tape was not released earlier because the caller apparently disguised his voice, Kennedy said. Now, he said, authorities hope that someone might recognize the voice on the recording.

Kennedy also displayed a green, military-style knapsack that he said is similar to one that held the nail-and-shrapnel bomb.

The sack containing the bomb apparently was kicked over inadvertently by someone in the park from a vertical to a horizontal position, which diminished the force of the explosion, he said.

“Indeed, that turned out to be very fortunate . . . because no doubt that movement saved a lot of lives,” Kennedy said.

Times staff writer Jane Hall contributed to this story from New York.