Crime and Courts

UPDATE: Kansas Man Pleads Guilty To Aiding Foiled Bomb Plot At Fort Riley

KMUW | By J. Schafer,

Published May 23, 2016 at 9:50 AM CDT

Fort Riley is the home of the First Infantry Division, also known as the Big Red One.

Update from the AP:

A man accused of conspiring in a foiled plot to bomb a Kansas military base on behalf of the Islamic State group has pleaded guilty to conspiracy. Alexander E. Blair changed his plea to guilty on Monday in a Topeka federal court. Prosecutors say Blair helped 21-year-old John T. Booker in his plot to plant a 1,000-pound bomb at the Fort Riley military base to aid the Islamic State group. Blair admitted in court that he loaned Booker $100 to secure a storage space for the explosives and failed to inform law enforcement of the plot. Booker has already pleaded guilty in the case.

Original Story

A court hearing was scheduled on Monday morning for a Topeka man accused of trying to help another man in a plot to bomb Fort Riley.

Today's court hearing is for 29-year-old Alexander Blair, of Topeka. Prosecutors say he loaned 21-year-old John T. Booker $100 for storage space for explosives and failed to notify authorities. Booker is the man who intended to plant a 1,000-pound bomb at Fort Riley -- and prosecutors think Blair knew about the plan and helped him.

John Booker already pleaded guilty and acknowledged the plot. Now, a federal judge will hear a change-of-plea request from Alexander Blair. Blair had pleaded not guilty to the charges earlier, but now, he's changed his mind.

Court documents say Blair decided to change his plea because he believes the government has collected enough evidence to convict him of conspiracy.

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Crime and Courts Fort Riley

J. Schafer

J. Schafer is the News Director of Kansas Public Radio at the Univeristy of Kansas. He’s also the Managing Editor of the Kansas Public Radio Network, which provides news and information to other public radio stations in Kansas and Missouri. Before joining KPR in 1995, Schafer spent 10 years as a commercial radio and TV newsman. During his career, he's filed stories for nearly every major radio news network in the nation including ABC, NBC, CBS, AP, UPI, the Mutual Broadcasting System, NPR and the BBC. This seems to impress no one. At KPR, he produces feature stories, interviews and newscast items and edits the work of others. In the fall of 2000, he performed contract work for the U.S. State Department, traveling to central Asia to teach broadcast journalism at newly independent radio stations in the former Soviet Union. One of his passions is Kansas; learning about and promoting the state’s rich heritage, people and accomplishments. Schafer gives presentations about Kansas to various organizations around the state to remind residents about our awesome history and incredible people. A native of Great Bend, he studied journalism and mass communications at Barton County Community College and at the University of Kansas. He was also an exchange student to Villingen-Schwenningen, Germany. The “J.” in J. Schafer stands for Jeremy, but he doesn’t really care for that name. He also enjoys the pretentiousness of using just a single initial for a first name!

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