Now that the Federal authorities have confirmed that the person behind the RV bombing that shook Nashville on Christmas was Anthony Warner, who died in the explosion, the attention turns to the motive behind the explosion. Investigators have been sifting through hundreds, even thousands, of clues, trying to answer the question.
And even after two days, investigators are yet to ascertain the actual motive behind the bombing and are trying to explore different angle including Warner's mental state prior to the explosion. However, one possible clue, hinting potentially at Warner's mental state, came when police revealed Sunday morning that a haunting song was playing from Warner's explosives-filled RV before the explosion.
Inside Warner's Mind
Moments before the RV exploded on Christmas morning, it was playing Petula Clark's classic pop song 'Downtown,' according to an officer who was among the firsts to respond to the scene. The officer, James Luellen, who started evacuating citizens from that area as the RV blared an audio warning before exploding into a fireball, said that he heard that vehicle countdown changed to Clark's 1964 chartbuster.
Liellen said that he initially couldn't identify the song but later remembered that it was Clark's 'Downtown' after talking to a fellow officer. "What I remembered was, 'Downtown, where the lights shine bright,' " he said. "Later, the ATF agent I spoke to pulled it up, and ... 'Downtown' by Petula Clark was the specific song that was played."
Clueless about the motive behind the explosion, investigators are now trying to find out what was going on in Warner's mind moments before the explosion or was he just taunting them by playing that song.
Uncanny Relationship
There can be several reasons behind Warner playing 'Downtown.' Investigators believe it could be his way of telling the world about his mental state before embracing death. No doubt, 'Downtown' has a melancholic tone and says a lot about Warner, who, according to his neighbors, was a 'chronic loner' and seldom spoke to others.
"When you're alone and life is making you lonely, you can always go downtown," the song begins. "When you've got worries, all the noise and the hurry seems to help, I known, downtown." And that's exactly what Warner did.
Interestingly, 'Downtown' was also sung in celebration of a rogue Vietnam bombing run in the 1991 war film 'Flight of the Intruder'. Investigators are now trying to draw a connection between the song's title and downtown location Warner chose, which is right outside an AT&T switching station.
Investigators are reportedly now also probing if Warner's intention was to hamper the local cell service which made him choose the AT&T building as his target because he may have been paranoid about 5G technology and alleged government spying.
