(The following story by Bob Roberts appeared at WBBM.com on July 26, 2009.)
CHICAGO — The FBI has increased from $5,000 to $7,500 the reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person who bombed a BNSF Railway switch shed near Sugar Grove May 12.
FBI Special Agent Ross Rice said that to date, there is no evidence linking the incident to any other sabotage either on BNSF property or in the Chicago area, and said it may have been “a prank.”
Someone dropped a pipe bomb down a rooftop air vent, and the resulting explosion destroyed switching equipment inside.
No one was hurt, but Rice said the blast disrupted both Amtrak and freight operations on the line for several days.
The shack is located several miles west of the terminal used by Metra BNSF commuter trains, in Aurora.
Rice said a number of tips have been processed and extensive investigation done. But he said the early hour of the bombing and its location have made it difficult to find any eyewitnesses.
The FBI is investigating alongside BNSF’s own police department and Kane County Sheriff’s police, under the Federal Train Wreck statute, which provides for penalties of up to 20 years in prison.
Anyone with information is urged to call the Chicago FBI office or BNSF Railway tip line.