Federal authorities have arrested a man at JFK airport in New York who allegedly provided bomb parts to the suspect responsible for last month’s attack on a fertility clinic in Palm Springs, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
The individual, who sources said was detained around 5 p.m. last night at the airport, will appear in a Brooklyn federal courtroom on Wednesday afternoon on charges related to the Palm Springs attack. The sources requested anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly about the pending case.
The sources identified the man arrested Daniel Park, 32 of Kent, Washington.
The U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles and the city’s FBI’s top official are expected to announce the developments in the case at a 9 a.m. press conference Wednesday. Bill Essayli, the top federal prosecutor in L.A., previously said his office and the FBI would lead the investigation into the incident, which has been labeled domestic terrorism.
Guy Edward Bartkus, the primary suspect, is believed to have detonated a bomb at American Reproductive Centers in Palm Springs on May 17, killing himself and injuring at least four people.
The FBI described the Palm Springs blast — powerful enough to damage buildings several blocks away — as “probably the largest bombing scene that we’ve had in Southern California,” eclipsing the 2018 bombing of a day spa in Aliso Viejo.
Law enforcement sources told The Times that the bomber used a very large amount of explosives — so much that the bomb shredded his remains. Investigators have been examining how Bartkus acquired the massive cache of bomb materials.
Law enforcement sources said that authorities recovered explosive materials from Bartkus’ home and that he was skilled in assembling explosive devices. He also was a longtime rocket builder.
FBI case investigators, as well as law enforcement sources, characterize Bartkus, 25, as having “antinatalist” ideations, a conclusion drawn from social media posts and other online materials authorities have linked to him.
In those public posts, he argued that procreation without the consent of the unborn is unethical and unjustifiable in a world struggling with environmental harm, violence and overpopulation.
The online trail that authorities are scouring to glean some insight into Bartkus’ motives include a website that appears dedicated to the Palm Springs bombing. It features a 30-minute recording that site data indicates was uploaded at the time of the explosion, and promises a video — never posted — of the blast. There are also YouTube videos under a web alias associated with Bartkus, and threads on Reddit and a suicide forum.
In those, Bartkus voiced despondence over the death of a “best friend,” Sophie, a woman who lived in Washington who ran multiple social media sites espousing radical feminism, veganism and intentional suicide. She died in April, allegedly shot in the head by her partner. That man told police he was acting at her request.
