Plea Bargain With McVeigh’s Friend Sought

Pressing to fill gaps in what is known about the movements of suspect Timothy J. McVeigh before the Oklahoma City bombing, authorities have reopened plea bargaining with Michael Fortier, seeking his cooperation and possible testimony about his longtime friend’s actions.

Sources close to the case said Tuesday that Fortier, who has told authorities of accompanying McVeigh to Oklahoma City before the attack, still wants to escape any prison sentence for his alleged involvement.

But sources here and in Washington said that the government will not go that far to win cooperation of the Kingman, Ariz., man. A no-prison deal would be difficult for prosecutors to make in a case where President Clinton and Atty. Gen. Janet Reno both have pledged that the death penalty will be sought for those responsible in the worst terrorist act on U.S. soil.

“We wanted to come back at him one more time,” said one source who insisted on anonymity. “He is very important to us. He was present for a lot of the preparation that went into this. He was involved.”

Prosecutors hope they can strike a deal before the Aug. 11 deadline for a grand jury indictment of McVeigh, a cutoff that also is expected to be set for Terry L. Nichols, the only other suspect arrested so far in the April 19 bombing.

One source said that the new round of discussions was prompted by Oklahoma City attorneys representing Fortier and his wife, Lori. But he added that authorities are prepared to speak to Fortier further before they seek a grand jury indictment in the bombing.

Attorneys for the Fortiers, Mack K. Martin and Michael McGuire, did not return a reporter’s calls.

Officials first turned their attention to Fortier after learning that he and McVeigh had been Army buddies, that Fortier helped McVeigh land a job in Kingman and that McVeigh served as best man at Fortier’s wedding last July.

After the bombing, which left 168 dead and 500 injured, Fortier said that McVeigh was not involved in the blast and called him “an innocent man.”

Later, he and his wife were summoned to Oklahoma City to meet with federal investigators. According to sources close to the case, it was then that Fortier told investigators he and McVeigh drove to Oklahoma City shortly before the bombing and walked through the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building to check it out.

Those talks with authorities eventually broke down and the Fortiers returned to Kingman. However, their property was thoroughly searched by government investigators and several items were seized. The FBI now is keeping Fortier under close surveillance.

Meanwhile, a source reiterated Tuesday that investigators are still reviewing all of Fortier’s statements as well as his past activities to determine the depth of his alleged involvement in the bombing.

Serrano reported from Oklahoma City and Ostrow from Washington.