Reward Offer Increased in Sugar Grove Railway Bombing Incident

Robert D. Grant, Special Agent-in-Charge of the Chicago office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) was joined today by Gerald D. Pennington, Chief of Police for the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad (BNSF) in announcing that a reward of up to $7,500 is now being offered for information leading to the identification and arrest of the person or persons responsible for the bombing of a BNSF switching shed, earlier this year.

The blast took place during the early morning hours of Tuesday, May 12th, inside a concrete bungalow building near Sugar Grove, Illinois. The building contained electronic components that controlled rail switches for the BNSF’s Aurora line, in and around the Sugar Grove area. The explosion was first discovered when a BNSF dispatcher received a switch malfunction alarm. When BNSF employees investigated, they determined that the building housing the switching controls had been severely damaged by an explosion.

Subsequent investigation by the BNSF Police and the Kane County Sheriff’s office determined that the damage was caused by an explosive device, believed to be a pipe bomb, which was apparently dropped into the building through a roof top air vent.

The blast caused a major disruption of rail traffic for several hours to the BNSF’s Aurora line, which carries both freight traffic and Amtrak passenger trains. No injuries were reported as a result of the blast, either directly or through disruption to rail traffic.

In announcing an increase in the reward offer, Mr. Grant noted that, although no arrests have yet been made, numerous tips have been received and extensive investigation into this bombing has already been conducted. Mr. Grant added “While no injuries or loss of life resulted from this incident, this bombing was certainly an intentional act and will continue to be aggressively investigated by the FBI.”

The Chicago FBI is investigating this incident jointly with the BNSF Railroad Police Department and the Kane County Sheriff’s Office. Forensic examination of bomb fragments recovered from the site has been conducted by the FBI’s Crime Laboratory in Quantico, Virginia. The reward offer announced today is being made by the BNSF Railroad.

This incident is being investigated under the Federal Train Wreck statue, which provides for a maximum penalty of up to 20 years' incarceration for anyone convicted of intentionally damaging or destroying tracks, switches or other railway infrastructure.

Anyone with information about this incident is asked to call the Chicago FBI at (312) 421-6700 or the BNSF tip line at (800) 832-5452.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Additional copies of the attached reward flyer are available from the Chicago FBI’s press office at (312) 829-1199.