1429-AA. Date: February 7, 2008
Target: Mayor Mike Swoboda
Location: Kirkwood, MO
Details: Charles "Cookie" Thornton parked his van outside City Hall. He saw Police Officer William Biggs crossing the street and shot him with a .44 magnum revolver, killing him. Thornton took Biggs' .40 handgun and went inside City Hall. He quietly entered the back of the meeting room, then opened fire on Police Officer Tom Ballman, killing him. Shouting, "Kill the mayor," Thornton opened fire on Swoboda and other members of the council. Council members Michael Lynch and Connie Karr, and Public Works Director Ken Yost were killed. Swoboda was shot twice in the head, but survived. Thornton fled outside and exchanged shots with responding officers, who killed him. He was a disgruntled citizen with many past complaints against city government.
1430-AA. Date: February 18, 2008
Target: Former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif
Location: Peshawar, Pakistan
Details: Police defused a 400-gram roadside bomb, just minutes before Sharif's motorcade was due to pass. Sharif was travelling in a convoy to address a lawyers' convention and a political rally. The bomb was fitted with a timer and wrapped in a plastic shopping bag beneath a main bridge near the high court on the route that Sharif was to take. Sharif's convoy was stopped about a half mile before it reached the area.
1431-AA. Date: February 21, 2008
Victims: Senators John Kerry, Joseph Biden, and Chuck Hagel
Location: Afghanistan
Details: Helicopters carrying three U.S. senators made emergency landings in the mountains of Afghanistan because of a snowstorm. No one was injured.
1432-AA. Date: February 22, 2008
Target: CIA Headquarters
Location: McLean, VA
Details: Antoine Lowery drove a pickup with a snowplow into a gate at CIA headquarters, causing it to swing open. Lowery left the truck and made a series of threats, including "the truck is going to blow up" and "I have a bomb." Lowery also reportedly counted down from five several times as if waiting for an explosion. There was no bomb and CIA officers took him into custody.
1433-AA. Date: February 22, 2008
Target: Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton
Location: Dallas, TX
Details: A Dallas police motorcycle officer crashed while escorting the Clinton motorcade to a campaign rally.
1434-AA. Date: February 29, 2008
Target: Mayor Giovanni Piscitelli
Location: Cervino, Italy
Details: Piscitelli's body was found beside his burned car. He had been shot and wounded, and his feet were bound with wire. His car was then set on fire and he was burned alive. He had apparently opened a door and crawled out before dying from the flames. Police blamed the local mafia with his killing.
1435-AA. Date: March 2, 2008
Target: President Vladimir Putin
Location: Moscow, Russia
Details: An informant told Federal Security Service (FSB) officials a few days before the election that Putin's assassination was being planned and that an apartment had been rented on the other side of the river from the Kremlin for the purpose. Security officers reportedly raided the apartment and detained a 24-year-old Tajik national with a "whole arsenal of firearms," including a sniper rifle and a Kalashnikov assault rifle. About three hours later, Putin and his ally Dmitry Medvedev, who won the March 2 election, walked out of the Kremlin onto Red Square and gave victory speeches to thousands of attendees.
1436-AA. Date: March 21, 2008
Target: Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison
Location: Dallas, TX
Details: Michael Ralph Kleysteuber was arrested for stalking after he confronted Hutchison's husband at their home and threatened him. Kleysteuber reportedly told Capitol Police he had once spent 30 days in a psychiatric hospital, and he was engaged to Ms. Hutchison. He reportedly also claimed to be an inventor who developed a device that allows people to communicate with thoughts, and he heard Ms. Hutchison's voice telling him to contact her. Capitol Police special agents saw Kleysteuber pull into the Hutchisons' driveway and notified Dallas police. Dallas police officers arrested him on the front porch of their home. Ms. Hutchison has been stalked for much of her career by a different man, who volunteered on her 1972 campaign.
1437-AA. Date: April 22, 2008
Target: Columnist Thomas Friedman
Location: Providence, RI
Details: Friedman was speaking to a group at Brown University when two environmental activists jumped on stage and tossed cream pies at him. Friedman was struck on the arm and pants. The protesters flung a handful of fliers onto the stage and fled out a side door. Friedman returned to the stage after five minutes and continued his remarks.
1438-AA. Date: April 27, 2008
Target: President Hamid Karzai
Location: Kabul, Afghanistan
Details: Three people were killed and about 10 wounded in an attack during a military parade. Bodyguards whisked Karzai and other VIPs away in a convoy of armored SUVs. A lawmaker, an MP, and a 10-year-old child were among the dead. The gunfire apparently came from a three-story guesthouse, about 300 yards from the stands where Karzai was seated alongside Cabinet ministers and senior diplomats, who all escaped unharmed, including US Ambassador William Wood. A Taliban spokesman said six militants were deployed to target the president, and three of those militants died in the attack. They were reportedly armed with guns, rockets, and suicide vests although no suicide bombings were reported.
1439-AA. Date: May 4, 2008
Target: First Lady Hiro Ibrahim Ahmed
Location: Baghdad, Iraq
Details: A bomb exploded as the motorcade for President Jalal Talabani's wife went past, injuring four bodyguards. She was not injured.
1440-AA. Date: May 19, 2008
Target: Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer
Location: Budapest, Hungary
Details: Ballmer was delivering a speech to students on a university campus when a protester stood and demanded that Microsoft return money to the Hungarian people. He then threw three eggs at Ballmer, who dodged them all. Startled at first, Ballmer quickly recovered and called it "a friendly disruption."
1441-AA. Date: June 8, 2008
Target: Governor Rick Perry
Location: Austin, TX
Details: A Molotov cocktail was thrown at the mansion, starting a blaze that did extensive damage. Governor Perry and his family were not at home. An official review later found: "The security detail was understaffed, not trained properly, some equipment was faulty, out of the 20 cameras, 13 were working."
1442-AA. Date: July 18, 2008
Target: President George W. Bush
Location: Jerusalem, Israel
Details: Police arrested six men who were reportedly plotting to shoot down Bush's helicopter. Investigators found bomb-making instructions on their computers.
1443-AA. Date: July 22, 2008
Target: Prime Minister Gordon Brown
Location: London, England
Details: During a ceremony at 10 Downing Street, an award recipient squirted superglue onto the palm of his hand and glued himself to Brown's coat sleeve. He stated, "I've just superglued myself to your arm. Don't panic. This is a nonviolent protest." Brown freed himself after about 30 seconds.
1440-AA. Date: February 11, 2008
Targets: President Jose Ramos-Horta and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao
Location: Dili, East Timor
Details: Before dawn, rebel soldiers led by Alfredo Reinado entered the residential compound of President Jose Ramos-Horta. They disarmed the security detail on duty and entered the compound. The President had gone jogging on the beach and was not there. Members of the security team arriving to relieve the now incapacitated night team saw Renaido in the house and opened fire, killing him with a shot to the head. Another rebel was also killed. The President was made aware of the gunfight and nonetheless returned to the home. Reinado's men opened fire on the President
and he was hit, as was one of his guards (who reportedly pushed in front of him as a human shield). The surviving rebels fled the scene. A second group of rebel soldiers invaded the home of Prime Minister Gusmao, however the Prime Minister, having been made aware of the attack on the Presidents home, had just left. Another party of rebels shot out the tires of Gusmao's car, but the car continued for some distance before Gusmao, unhurt, abandoned it and ran away. The President was evacuated to Darwin, Australia, for emergency surgery. He survived and was hospitalized for more than a month.
1441-AA. Date: May 8, 2008
Target: Police Commissioner Edgar Millan
Location: Mexico City, Mexico
Details: Three hitmen shot Millan nine times as he stepped outside his home. Millan's bodyguards chased the men, catching one (who was armed with two pistols, one with a silencer, and a latex glove). Millan died, one of the highest level police officials to be killed by drug cartels.
1442-AA. Date: May 21, 2008
Target: Microsoft CEO Steve Balmer
Location: Budapest, Hungary
Details: Balmer was making a presentation to a group at Corvinus University when a student shouted a protest and threw three eggs at Balmer. Balmer was not hit, and joked that "It was a friendly disruption."
1443-AA. Date: June 8, 2008
Target: Governor Rick Perry
Location: Austin, Texas
Details: The Governor's Mansion was severely damaged in a fire. The Perrys were in Europe, and no one was injured. A DPS officer on duty at the residence was alerted to the fire by a tripped smoke alarm. Arson investigators later said the fire had been intentionally set. A surveillance video showed a man scaling the wall and hurling an incendiary device onto the mansion's front porch.
1444-AA. Date: June 8, 2008
Targets: Presidential Candidates (Senators) Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, and Governor Ed Rendell
Location: Pennsylvania
Details: Six members of a militia movement were arrested after officials found stockpiles of assault rifles, improvised explosives, and homemade weapons at the home of Militia recruiter Bradley Kahle. He had reportedly told authorities he intended to shoot black people from a rooftop in Pittsburgh, and also predicted civil war if either Obama or Hillary Clinton were elected president. A related raid resulted in the seizure of 73 weapons.
1445-AA. Date: June 24, 2008
Target: French President Nicolas Sarkozy
Location: Tel Aviv, Israel
Details: An Israeli soldier on post at the Ben-Gurion Airport died from a self-inflicted firearms wound. The incident took place about 200 yards from Sarkozy's farewell ceremony. Security agents surrounded Sarkozy and his wife, and rushed them onto his plane. Agents immediately surrounded Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and President Shimon Peres, and moved them to their armored vehicles.
1446-AA. Date: July 9, 2008
Target: Lt. General Riyadh Jalal Tawfiq
Location: Mosul, Iraq
Details: A suicide bomber detonated a car outside a regional police building where Tawfiq, the chief of the Iraqi military command for the city, was holding a meeting. Five civilians died in the incident. General Tawfiq was not hurt, though seven of his bodyguards were injured, along with 41 civilians.
1447-AA. Date: July 13, 2008
Target: Senior Cabinet Official Ngor Srun
Location: Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Details: A man dumped a container of acid on Srun's head and fled with an accomplice on a motorbike. Srun was treated for burns on his face, ear, and chest.
1448-AA. Date: July 15, 2008
Target: Presidential Candidate (Senator) Barack Obama
Location: North Carolina
Details: A man named Jerry Blanchard was indicted for threatening to kill Obama while he was having breakfast at a Waffle House. He allegedly called Obama "the Antichrist" at the breakfast, and made similar threats against Obama later at a hotel. Blanchard was placed in custody, though there have no reports that he planned to go through with an attack.
1449-AA. Date: July 18, 2008
Target: President George W. Bush
Location: Jerusalem, Israel
Details: Police arrested six men who were reportedly plotting to shoot down Bush's helicopter during his visit to the region. One member photographed the planned landing site, sent the photographs to a Web site linked to al-Qaeda, and suggested shooting the helicopter down.
1450-AA. Date: July 22, 2008
Target: Prime Minister Gordon Brown
Location: London, England
Details: During a ceremony at 10 Downing Street, an attendee squirted superglue onto the palm of his hand and glued himself to Brown's coat sleeve. He told the Prime Minister, "I've just super-glued myself to your arm. Don't panic. This is a non-violent protest." Brown freed himself after about 30 seconds.
1451-AA. Date: July 31, 2008
Target: President George Bush and Pres. Candidate (Senator) Barack Obama
Location: Miami, Florida
Details: A man named Raymond Geisel was charged with making threatening statements against Obama. Geisel also threatened to put a bullet in the head of then-President Bush, although he later claimed he was joking. He was also found to be in possession of ammunition, body armor, a combat-style hatchet, tear gas, a loaded 9mm handgun, and four loaded magazines. Geisel remained in custody for a month.
1452-AA. Date: August 5, 2008
Target: President George W. Bush
Location: Bethesda, Maryland
Details: A man named Collin McKenzie-Gude was arrested on charges of weapons violations, possession of explosives, and attempted carjacking. Police found a map of Camp David he had marked with a presidential motorcade route, more than 50 pounds of chemicals, assault-style weapons, and armor-piercing bullets. He also had two fake IDs: one portraying him as a CIA employee, and the other in the name of a federal contractor.
1453-AA. Date: August 12, 2008
Target: Provincial Governor Raad Rashid al-Tamimi
Location: Baquba, Iraq
Details: A female suicide bomber detonated as Tamimi's convoy was approaching her. Two people were killed, but Tamimi was not injured. The bomber triggered her explosives prematurely, reportedly because guards had spotted her.
1454-AA. Date: August 21, 2008
Target: Presidential Candidate (Senator) John McCain
Location: Denver, Colorado
Details: An inmate in the Arapahoe County Jail named Marc Ramsey sent McCain a threatening letter containing white powder. The letter stated: "Senator McCain, If you are reading this then you are already dead! Unless of course you can't or don't breathe..." The substance was found to not be hazardous.
1455-AA. Date: August 23, 2008
Target: Deputy Minister Kamal Shyaa Abdullah
Location: Baghdad, Iraq
Details: Abdullah and his driver were killed by gunmen as they drove along a highway. The Deputy Minister had declined to have bodyguards and security precautions.
1456-AA. Date: August 24, 2008
Target: Presidential Candidate (Senator) Barack Obama
Location: Denver, Colorado
Details: White supremacists Shawn Adolf, Tharin Gartrell, and Nathan Johnson were arrested in Denver during the Democratic National Convention on weapons charges and for possession of amphetamines. Their reported plan was to shoot Obama "from a high vantage point using a rifle sighted at 750 yards" during his acceptance speech at the convention. Police found two scoped rifles, one with a silencer, two wigs, three fake IDs, camouflage clothing, a bullet-resistant vest, two walkie-talkies, and 4.4 grams of methamphetamine in Gartrell's truck. Gartrell implicated Adolf and Johnson, who were staying at a nearby hotel. Adolf was wearing a bullet-resistant vest and had eight active warrants for his arrest. Although police say the group talked about assassinating Obama, they were not charged in connection with that threat.
1457-AA. Date: August 26, 2008
Target: U.S. D
iplomat Lynne Tracy
Location: Peshawar, Pakistan
Details: Tracy was traveling in an armored car, accompanied by a bodyguard and her driver. A vehicle blocked the road and a gunman opened fire on the car with an AK-47-style weapon. Tracy's driver reversed, backing into a rickshaw, and escaped. The attackers escaped.
1458-AA. Date: August 27, 2008
Target: Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Former PM Tony Blair
Location: London, England
Details: Five Muslim men were arrested in connection with threats to kill Brown and Blair. Anti-terror teams had spent months investigating warnings on a recognized jihadi website by a group calling itself "Al-Qaeda in Britain." Police determined there was no evidence of any active plot.
1459-A. Date: August 30, 2008
Target: Republican National Convention (RNC)
Location: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Details: A man named Matthew DePalma was arrested by the FBI for possession of Molotov cocktails he reportedly intended to use to attack the RNC. DePalma had allegedly told an FBI source he intended to "make some bombs" and "blow up" things during the RNC. DePalma obtained supplies, and manufactured and tested Molotov cocktails. He was arrested in a Minneapolis apartment on August 28 for possession of five Molotov cocktails.
1460-A. Date: September 3, 2008
Target: Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani
Location: Ralwalpindi, Pakistan
Details: Shots were fired at Gilani's motorcade en route to the airport to pick him up. Paskistani TV showed a Mercedes with two bullet marks on the driver's bullet-resistant window. No one was injured.
1461-AA. Date: September 5, 2008
Target: U.S. Capitol
Location: Washington, DC
Details: A man pulled his vehicle up to a Capitol policeman to ask directions and the officer noticed a rifle case in the back seat. Police discovered an IED, a rifle, and ammunition, and the man was arrested.
1462-AA. Date: September 7, 2008
Target: Singer Noel Gallagher (of the band Oasis)
Location: Toronto, Canada
Details: Gallagher's band was performing when a man rushed onto the stage. He pushed Gallagher off the stage. Security guards apprehended the man and arrested him for assault. Gallagher was taken to the hospital, and released without serious injuries.
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