By: Lexi Dai
Ted Kaczynski, also known as the “Unabomber,” died by suicide on June 10, 2023 in his prison cell.
Kaczynski graduated from Harvard in 1962, and was once a math professor at UC Berkeley. He went on to become one of the most feared bombers of the late 20th century in the U.S..
The name “Unabomber” arose because he would target researchers in universities and airlines; the “Un” stands for universities and the “a” stands for airlines.
Since Kaczynski did not believe in technology and industrialization, he decided to take it upon himself and bomb those who were contributing to technology. He quit his job and moved into a shack in rural Montana. It had no electricity nor running water, but he built all of his bombs inside. Over the course of 20 years and 16 bombs, Kaczynski killed three people and injured an additional 23.
Before his capture, he caused many Americans to be afraid of opening unknown packages because of bomb fears. However, in 1996, his brother turned him in to the FBI after discovering similar uses of words between the letters Ted had written him and the letters Ted had written in his Manifesto to the public. In 1998, Kaczynski confessed to his crimes under the condition of not undergoing the death penalty. This past Saturday, on June 10, 2023, Kaczynski was found dead in his cell at the age of 81.
“The rampage spurred one of the longest and most expensive manhunts in United States history” (New York Times, 2023), yet he was never caught when actually executing his bombings. He avoided getting caught by using everyday items to construct the bombs. He would also be careful to sand off any fingerprints. He didn’t give investigators any clues about him, and instead gave false clues, taunting the FBI.
Everything was so perfect, but how did he get caught? In 1995, Kaczynski wrote a Manifesto which was published in The New York Times and Washington Post. Kaczynski’s brother, David Kaczynski, and his wife, Linda Patrik, found multiple phrases in the Manifesto that were also in their brother’s rambling letters. Some examples were “cool-headed logicians” and “wilfully”.
They started to piece things together that their brother was the “Unabomber.” David found himself caught in a dilemma between protecting his brother and letting people die. He soon chose to turn his brother in to the FBI. Twenty-five years after his confessions, Ted Kaczynski’s death brought his story to an end.
Sources:
https://eb18600f7bb2916037f5ee8e636ce199.cdn.bubble.io/f1686436770584x554189352828208000/Ted%20Kaczynski%20dead_%20Unabomber%20had%20eluded%20FBI%20for%20year s%20-%20Los%20Angeles%20Times.pdf
-https://www.nytimes.com/2023/06/10/us/unabomber-ted-kaczynski.html
-https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unabomber_Manifesto